Quelling of the Heart
by Gemnat
Summary: They say you can't control who you fall in love with. They the heart wants what it wants. They say you never forget your first or true love. Tsukino Usagi found out the hard way.
1. The promise

She stared at the phone in her hand; willing it to ring. She didn't want to be the one to call him again. After what seemed to be hours, she sighed dejectedly and placed her phone back into her back and continued eating her muffin and coffee. This was the place she came to. To hide. To escape. To cry. At the Crown Arcade memories and visions haunted her, but here, the unfamiliarity of sorts eased her treacherous heart.

Somewhere along the line their insults and daily barbs at each other had turned into friendly banter – an unspoken truce and forgiveness passed between them. Customers in the Crown no longer expected a show to be put on by those two for their entertainment. Instead they saw two people who seemingly couldn't be caught dead breathing the same air as the other, now relishing the company of the other.

It was strange, and she knew it. What was stranger, was the fact that she was the one to fall first. She knew the exact moment she fell – when she started to notice all the good things about him. They had sometimes gone out together just to enjoy each other's company. Simple places like the movies, having lunch together etc. They had talked and through it all she came to see that he was gentle, caring, considerate and a good listener. She had told him her doubts and fears when it came to choosing a degree and a career path. It was at that moment, when he was encouraging her, telling her not to rush – "you are young, you'll find the right career just wait and see" – that she looked in his looked in his eyes. The belief in her she found there struck her to the core, but that wasn't all that made her fall. No. It was the beauty of his eyes that made her fall. Sure he was a naturally beautiful man. No amount of insults he threw at her could make her deny his physical beauty. Even now his physical beauty did not move her the way it did other girls. Now as she stared into his eyes, she saw a passion for life that spoke to her. A beauty in them far out shone his physical perfections. He was never a cold, closed off individual. In fact it was when they stopped arguing that she finally realised it was a matter of who he was with that could spark his personality and passion to life. She had sparked him to life. She had brought out the beauty in him that he only showed to select individuals. She then knew in that moment – she, Tsukino Usagi had fallen for Chiba Mamoru.

After that day they had seemingly grown closer. Years of arguing, insulting, bickering, had turned into a true friendship, and in her mind, a possible love. There was nothing that could break the two apart, she thought, until that day a couple months ago. The day everything changed....

They were in the Crown as usual, their other friends, bar Motoki, had long gone. It was customary that they stayed with him as he closed up, in case he needed any help, or should any danger be lurking. A knock was heard on the locked doors and all heads looked up to see a woman outside asking to be let in. She saw Mamoru smile and a sinking feeling came over her. Motoki let her in and instantly Mamoru and the woman locked eyes. The passion that she thought was now reserved for only her, came flooding through his eyes as he looked at this other woman.

He took her hand and brought her over to where she was now sitting alone, with Motoki following, a smile also on his face. "Usagi, I'd like you to meet my girlfriend Meioh Setsuna." And with those few words she felt her fantasy world come tumbling down. She put on a brave smile, but pretended her phone vibrated indicating a new message. After "reading" the message she quickly left and rushed home. Something had always told her it wasn't real. Something had always told her to quell the love in her heart. Nothing could have stopped her heart from feeling the way it did about Mamoru. And nothing could have prepared her for the total devastation that came when he said those words. She knew she shouldn't be crying: 'he had never said he loved me' she tried to reason in her mind. So why did she feel so much despair?

Up in her room, on her bed, she looked out the window. There was no wailing; only silent tears coursed their way over her cheek bones and down her face. Leaning on her window sill, she rested her head on her arms and silently willed herself to be happy. If he was happy, then she would be happy for him. She would learn to control her feelings; she would quell the love in her heart for a man that did not love her. Lying in her bed finally she stared up at the ceiling, and with a slow, deliberate exhalation, she closed her eyes.

'I'll be happy for you Mamoru, even if I can't have you.' That was the last thought that filtered through her mind before she succumbed to sleep. Little did she know, her heart had other ideas.

**Konnichiwa ^_^ this is my first attempt at a fanfiction. I've been reading for years and thought I'd attempt one since I do love to write. This is a one shot so please review and tell me what you think! Should I continue this as a multi-chapter story?? Should I even continue writing lol? Let me know please! Roasting (harsh critiquing) but please, no unnecessary rudeness!! Thanks**


	2. That's why he could never love you

**Hola :) I've decided to do a multi chapter fic....thank you Lady Airly! 3 your kind words have definitely inspired me**

**Please R&R :) roasting welcome - rudeness not lol**

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An alarm sounded vaguely in her mind. Slowly but surely, two blue eyes opened to welcome the new day. Twisting and turning she finally wormed her way out of bed, as she mumbled something about inventing a switch to turn off the sun. After a quick shower she wrapped a green towel around her body and stood in front of the full length mirror inside of her room. As she looked over her features she took note of every detail about herself.

At 5'5'' she was the average height of most females. Her eyes were blue and helped to compliment her golden blonde hair. 'The stereotypical looks' she thought absently to herself. She continued by looking at her lips: plump and full enough that they were not distracting from the rest of her facial features. She sighed inwardly as her shoulders slumped. Facially she knew she was pretty, even beautiful as some people told her, but as her eyes trailed lower in the mirror the old insecurities came back full force. Insecurities she thought were long gone. Insecurities she hadn't felt since Mamoru used to point out all the flaws she found in herself.

While her facial features were that of the common "blonde bombshell", she knew her body was not. Whereas the "blonde bombshell" was physically perfect in every way, Usagi noted with slight embarrassment that she was far from it. Not overweight by any means, but she noticed with another sigh, areas on her body that made her self conscious. There was no flat stomach that was shown off in bikinis, but there was no big stomach either. Instead there was a bit of fat on her stomach which created a small pouch. Not wanting to dwell there, she moved down further to her legs. From years of high – school volleyball her legs had toned nicely, but that was 3 years ago and after so much time away from the sport, they were beginning to lose their definition. Her breasts were rounded and she perked up a bit as she poked them. Laughing quietly to herself she realised she was at least pleased with her breasts. "Not too firm, not too soft, not too droopy...at least I can count on you guys." The laughing soon quieted though as another thought crossed her mind: 'She was perfect...that's why he could never love you.'

That one treacherous thought led her down a path she didn't want to go, but her mind went anyway. She remembered how beautiful Setsuna was. If there was anything such as a "brunetteshell" she was sure that Setsuna was the definition of it. Her beauty was exaggerated even more by the absolute class and poise with which she seemed to carry herself. 'That's why he could never love you' her mind whispered again.

But this time she ignored it. While the hurt was still raw, she had remembered her promise from the night before: she would quell the love for Mamoru and be happy that he was happy. She didn't know how, she just knew that it would be best for them both. As she tried to steel her resolve, her heart kept saying something different. "Well we'll just have to ignore that won't we." She said as she smiled at her reflection.

Mind made up, she started to get ready for work. The black skirt/white dress shirt combo never failed to flatter her figure and impress others. The black skirt was fitted but not tight, and came right to her knee. The white shirt was buttoned at the front, with a V-neck which came low enough to show the crucifix that she wore around her neck. It was a sexy professional look which she loved: sexy enough to draw looks, but professional enough that her boss wouldn't through her out. She put her silver chain belt around the waist of the skirt and let it hang at the side. Wedge heeled black shoes adorned her feet as she put on lip gloss, grabbed her jacket and made a dash for work. She was going to be late!

Arriving without a second to spare she parked her car and ran into her office. "8:01. You're late Usagi." She whirled around to see her boss standing with a smirk on his face. His black pants beautifully complimented by his royal blue dress shirt and matching black tie. "I know it won't..." "Happen again. I know." She got cut off as he finished her excuse. He continued, "Luckily you're a hard worker and I very much appreciate the work you're doing here. Just please be on time when I have to get to court. The judge doesn't wait on me. And remember I have a name to keep up!"

When he was finished he left as Usagi sat and sighed. She really was lucky Seiya was such a good boss to her. "And such a good lawyer since it helps me pay my bills." She said as she laughed. She may have been a good worker but she sighed again as she thought of the other reason why Seiya never fired her even though she was chronically late: he liked her.

Kou Seiya was a friend of her older brother. Their fathers had been lawyers and had owned the firm together. Her brother also worked here but he was in another division, working specifically on criminal cases. In this department with Seiya, they worked on corporate cases. Her love for law made her love her job here, but she didn't know whether she wanted to make it a full time career. After all, it was one thing to be helping a lawyer, but it was another thing to BE the lawyer. Her thoughts led her back to Mamoru and his encouragement even in the face of her indecision about the future.

Suddenly a thought occurred to her. As she was shooting it down however, the single thought crossed her mind again: 'that's why he could never love you.' Her mind made up once more, she remembered her promise again. This time though she realised, that her happiness for Mamoru didn't have to come at the price of her happiness.


	3. Just like old times

**So here is Chapter 3. You'll notice that chapter 2 and 3 were used to focus on building Usagi and Mamoru respectively. You'll also see that I didn't go the usual route and make them "so hot she/he looked she/he walked off a magazine cover". I believe the average person carries a few flaws whether physically or personality wise and as such I made them reflect that. I also threw in a hint as to where I plan to take the story. So please r&r and let me know what you think :)**

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He couldn't be happier. For the first time in his life everything seemed to be falling into place. His best friend was still his best friend, his girlfriend was FINALLY home, and Usagi was quickly becoming as close to him as Motoki. He stood in front of the bathroom mirror and smiled. His 6'1'' figure towered over the sink as he leaned over to wash his face. Looking back into the mirror he took in his features.

Deep set, dark blue eyes shone back at him as they peeked out from under some of his jet black locks that had found their way into his face. His face, chiselled to perfection, as Setsuna always told him. It had always bothered him when she said that. It wasn't that he didn't think he was a good looking man. He knew it by how other girls looked at him. For him however, he was never about looks; her constant admiration of his looks made her seem a bit shallow at times, but it was a thought he put aside on numerous occasions as merely foolish. He continued to look over himself, his eyes resting on his chest. Though he had worked out he was not as well defined as others he knew, and he liked it that way. His chest expanded upwards and led up to his broad masculine shoulders. Coming down his arms, he saw a small tattoo of a rose in front of a moon and chuckled as he remembered how he got it: Motoki and his rebellion. It was a way at the time, they thought, to get back at their parents for what seemed to be strict rules. Motoki however, like the wuss he was, chickened out and only he ended up with a tattoo. It meant he had to wear sleeved shirts, even in the warmth of summer days, to make sure his parents never found out. As the memory faded, he looked at his stomach. It was flat, it had definition. No washboard abs though, and it suited him fine. At least he thought so.

He always found Setsuna looking through magazines, admiring the male models and the perfect body. It never bothered him before until he answered his own question: who doesn't look through magazines and oogle the opposite sex? He didn't. Never did he understand how insecure women can feel about their bodies until she had awakened those same insecurities in him. He had never looked for the perfect woman physically. He thought it was ridiculous to set yourself a standard of having a perfect woman and no one else. If the perfect woman came to him, and Setsuna was gorgeous, he didn't mind, but he didn't go out of his way to find her. What Setsuna had done however, was to show him that some women do look for the perfect man as well. It was not as one sided as people seem to think. He sighed and exited the bathroom, pushing those thoughts to the back of his mind.

When he finished dressing and made his way to the kitchen, he found a note on the table. Setsuna had left already to go shopping. 'Typical' he thought with a smile and decided to make some breakfast for himself. As he ate the last piece of omelette he thought out loud, "maybe I can go catch up with Usagi." Donning a pair of jeans and a casual, blue, short sleeved shirt, he exited the quiet apartment on a mission to seek out his friend.

Knocking on her door, Mamoru waited until he heard her footsteps before smiling inwardly. As she opened the door she smiled at him before frowning again. "Let's go to the Crown." He said with his usual smile and charm, trying to persuade her. He knew Saturday meant that she wanted to stay home and relax but he hadn't seen her in a couple months since Setsuna had come back, and she was always tied up at work. "That may have worked when we were 20 but now that I'm 21 I'm immune to it." she said with a laugh. He let her quickly change clothes and they were on their way.

They found it easy to talk and quickly fell into their old routine, and as they entered Motoki soon joined in the fun. After being a bit apprehensive about the situation Usagi had started to relax. It had felt like old times once again. That was until the bell chimed signalling the entrance of a new customer. As they all looked around they saw Setsuna making her way to their table. Just like the first time, her heart fell and she chided herself for feeling hurt. 'Remember your promise' she thought. So she put on her best smile and scooted around as Motoki moved from his position next to Mamoru to make room for Setsuna. She became thankful that Motoki was there or else she didn't know if she could be as brave as she was being at that moment.

And just like that the atmosphere wasn't as friendly. The feelings of old times had passed and she suddenly felt uncomfortable. This time her phone did save her; it was Seiya. And unlike the times before, she wasn't going to turn down this opportunity. She was on her road to recovery. She was on her road to happiness. And Seiya was the one who would be there waiting. Smiling she looked up and said, "Sorry it's my boss. I've got to book it." They all nodded, except Setsuna, who looked a bit too happy to see her go. 'Maybe it's just my imagination.' As she was going through the door she heard Mamoru call her name. Looking back she waited until he reached her. What she hadn't expected were the words that left his mouth. "How about we go to the park tomorrow around lunch? Just you and me. We can catch up on what's been happening since we last spoke. It'll be just like old times."

Her instant shock made her breath catch in her throat. Had she heard him right? Well she knew she had heard what he said but it didn't make it any more believable. What about Setsuna? Wasn't Sunday lunch usually reserved for family and really close friends/girlfriends? As always, her promise to herself came back to her mind. "Sure Mamoru, just call before you come over." She said as she smiled. Her heart was thudding against her chest as she finally walked through the door. Unfortunately, 'just like old times' sent her back to the time before she knew he had a girlfriend. A time where she believed he felt the same way about her, like she felt about him. A time where she had not promised herself to be happy for him in his happiness. Sadly, she knew that she could not go back to old times. She sighed, which she noted she had been doing a lot of lately, and went off to meet Seiya.


	4. Just what I wanted to hear

**This chapter is dedicated to Ginzuishou74....Thank you!!! :)**

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Laughter erupted from the pair again. It seemed that was all they were doing since they had gotten together. Their case of the giggles would be set off by the slightest thing they thought was funny and right now it seemed to be anything visible. Blue eyes met blue and they were off again. Funny land appeared to be their home and they weren't leaving anytime soon. She hadn't felt like this in a while and the feeling was good to have back. What was even better was to know that he could make her feel it.

It was only when they realised that there were fewer and fewer people around them that they noticed how long they had been together. It was now growing dark and he had promised her to get her home safely. He took her hand and got up, which signalled that they were leaving. What he didn't want though, was to go home feeling empty. He didn't want to feel like he didn't accomplish anything from this outing. With that in mind he steadied himself as he prepared to discuss what was always on his mind....her.

"So Usagi have you decided what you are going to do as a career yet?" he asked her a simple conversational question so as to avoid jumping off the deep end. "Well I know what I want to do, but I don't know what I want to do." She looked around and saw the confusion written clearly on his face and chuckled. Continuing she said, "I know I love law, I understand it clearly and it just speaks to me. I love my job now and to be honest, I can't picture myself in any other career than something involving law. Be that as it may, I don't know if I want to be a lawyer. And before you say anything, all I mean is that I think it's different being in my job now where I'm just an assistant to the lawyer, compared to if I am the lawyer. If I'm the lawyer I have to be the one presenting the case to judges and juries, and we all know how I am with public speaking. Not to mention I'd probably get to court late every day." She finished with a laugh.

How he loved to hear her laugh. It was one of the few bright spots in his otherwise monotonous day. "Don't rush it," he said, "when the time comes you'll know what to do." They continued walking in a comfortable silence, not realising that their hands were still entwined. He knew he had to do it soon though. He had to finally say what was on his mind.

"I've got something important to tell you." As he said this, he stopped and turned her body so she was facing him. "We've known each other for years. I know we didn't see eye to eye at first, but now we've grown comfortable with each other and it's awakened some feelings within me that I've been trying to hide for a long time." He looked up at her, not able to look into her eyes for fear of seeing rejection before he heard it. With no reply coming he continued on, "I know we aren't in love but I like you enough to know that I want to give this a try; give us a try. If it doesn't work out in the end it would be fine because at least I'd know we gave it a try and there'd be no regrets. There'd be no looking back and wondering what might have been." He stopped his passion filled rant and looked up again to see her reaction.

Meanwhile her insides were churning. She was lost in a dream. She was finally hearing the words she had longed to hear, albeit not from the man she dreamed she'd first hear them from. Cupping his cheek to help calm his heart, she smiled at him. She could feel his nerves as he stood there waiting for her to say something. Her only response came in the form of a light kiss on his lips. She had never been good with words, and she didn't trust herself in this moment to say the right things. So she did the only thing she knew would convey what she was feeling. He pulled her a little closer as the kiss continued and he felt her smile into the kiss before they both parted.

He looked at her flushed cheeks and under the street lights she was beautiful. He knew she was pretty but standing here in this moment, under these lights seemed to make her features illuminate. It was also the moment he knew there would be no turning back. He had fallen in love with his subordinate of sorts. He had fallen in love with his employee. He had fallen in love with Usagi.

Usagi herself felt a spark between them, but in her heart she knew it wasn't like the spark she felt with Mamoru. 'Just forget about him and enjoy this man Usagi!' she scolded herself. Seiya was all she could want in a man. He was caring, he was reliable, and he was kind. He was a handsome man whose looks got enhanced because of the spirit within him.

As she looked into his eyes she saw the love that shone there for her, and felt a bit guilty. She knew her love for him wasn't nearly as strong as his was for her. It didn't help that she knew she was using him as a means to escape her feelings for Mamoru. But she pushed that away. 'I can grow to love him as he loves me.' And with that thought the guilt went away. She kissed him again with a bit more intensity so as to reassure herself of that last thought.

He took her hand again as they continued to walk. She realised however, that they were walking towards the Crown Arcade. It had been weeks since she had last been there. Weeks since she had gone to lunch with Mamoru. At the resurfacing of the memory of that lunch, she remembered how Setsuna had come along to lunch with Mamoru, thinking that she wouldn't have been bothered. Mamoru had agreed not knowing what it was doing to her. She didn't get angry because she knew he didn't know. Again she used her phone as an excuse, saying she needed to go to her boss. What she had failed to notice however, was the look of sadness that had crossed Mamoru's face when she left. He had wanted to be with her, to catch up with her. Their friendship was starting to lose ground and he knew it. Without a glance back she had left, and with no contact since then she didn't know how she'd feel seeing him again with Setsuna.

Seiya must have felt her uneasiness because he immediately stopped and cupped her cheek. "Are you ok?" he asked. "I just didn't want our night to end and I knew it would be safer for us near this arcade. I hope you aren't mad." She smiled and shook her head. "I'm just feeling a bit cold. Maybe the arcade will warm me up."

As they entered the arcade her eyes were drawn to a familiar booth, and just as she knew, she saw him sitting with Setsuna. He turned around to see who had just entered, and stopped. Their eyes made four and soon they both seemed to be lost in their little world. Motoki snapped her out of it by calling her name as he walked over to her and Seiya.

"I didn't know you were seeing someone Usagi! How could you keep him from us?" While she knew he was kidding, she knew a part of him was serious. He had always looked out for her and therefore felt he had a right to know who she was seeing. "Relax Motoki, this is Seiya. Seiya this is Motoki. Seiya is my boyfriend. Are you happy now?" she said with a slight chuckle. Again however, she failed to notice the look on Mamoru's face. She had not seen him approaching where they were standing. He had heard everything.

He wanted to be happy for her, he knew he did. But why was there a part of him that wanted to rip this guy a new one? He struggled against the new feeling inside him. 'Why would I be jealous? Usagi is free to date whomever she wants.' His inner questions went unanswered. He watched as Seiya wrapped an arm around Usagi and she looked at him and smiled. A smile that had been always reserved for him. Once upon a time she would only frown or growl at him. But after their truce he found that he was the only one she had truly smiled at. Sure she had laughed with Motoki, but they were more of a brother/sister type. The smile, now directed at someone else, served as an answer to his previous question. 'You like Usagi.'

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**4 chapters in one day. I'll continue over the weekend since I know volleyball practice will kill me too much to write tomorrow night. **

**Just a mini explanation of a phrase I used: here in Barbados when we say "me and his eyes made four" it means they made direct eye contact. Looking a person straight in the eye. **

**I also included more dialogue between the characters, and it will continue. Since it has turned into a multi chapter fic I felt I had to spend the first few chapters building the main characters and the issue surrounding them. I don't think I'll be bringing in the other girls, even though I had mentioned "their friends" earlier. They would have to be necessary and right now in my mind they aren't. Feel free to drop a review to let me know what you think however :)**


	5. Home errr Greece is where the heart is

**Chapter 5.... :) hope I'm still keeping your interest in the story....**

**If I no one picked up on it let me just point out: 'omg' is a thought and "omg" is spoken (whether audible or not) **

**and as always...R&R :)**

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It had been months since that day in the arcade. Their relationship had been slowly withering away. A relationship he had fought so hard to maintain was now on the brink of extinction, and Mamoru's logic could come up with only one reason: Seiya.

The nights after her proclamation of their relationship, her smile had haunted his dreams. Seiya had taken away his smile. 'Yes it is MY smile!' he thought angrily as he stared up at his ceiling. Setsuna had been called away on another business trip and it left him time to think. In his mind he went over all his time with Usagi, even before they were close friends. As he went over all the memories something stood out to him. Something he wished he had seen before. "She only ever got a text whenever Setsuna came around." He thought out loud. At the new revelation he sat up abruptly. "Could it be?"

No the thought was too strange, and yet he could find no other explanation. "It can't be." He rubbed his face vigorously with his hands as if it would erase the truth that had now made itself known. "But why hadn't she said something?" he asked himself. Searching his mind however, the answer never came. It didn't make sense to him. Sighing he went back over the situation for what seemed to be the millionth time. As her smile came to him again, he could no longer deny it. Usagi had liked him all along. That's why she smiled at him the way she did. That's why she blushed ever so slightly whenever he complimented her; granted he thought it was due to the fact of how their relationship had started – 'she just wasn't used to it' he had thought at the time. He felt like an idiot for not noticing it before.

Before he could get into abusing himself, his mind spewed out another question: "Would it have made a difference if she had said something?" Groaning loudly he ran his hand through his dark locks, rolled over onto his stomach and buried his face in his pillow. He knew that even if she HAD said something, there was nothing that could be done. Never the unfaithful type, Mamoru knew that he would have turned her down. Gently, but he would have turned her down. Even though she didn't know about Setsuna before, he would have told her about his girlfriend. Their friendship after that probably would have never been the same. The thought left a bittersweet feeling inside. He was happy their friendship wasn't ruined during that time, but he was also sad now over the fact that HE was now discovering his feelings for her at a time when she seemed to have forgotten hers. "Knowing Usagi she probably didn't forget hers, she's probably trying to push them aside now that Setsuna is in the picture." He said, voicing more of his thoughts. Suddenly he was thankful that his girlfriend wasn't here. This time of introspection was doing him SOME good.

But even in light of the fact of his new feelings towards Usagi, and Usagi's feelings for him, they were both now in relationships. As much as he liked her, he couldn't picture himself leaving a stable relationship for Usagi, as there was no guarantee that she would leave Seiya for him.

Seiya: the name alone made him shake from withheld anger. Never did he know he could be so angry at one person, one man, over a woman. Setsuna was gorgeous and whenever they were in public she'd get many eyes watching her, but it had never bothered him. His only problem is that she seemed to silently gloat about it, taking in all the attention thrown at her. It had never made his blood boil the way this one name was however. He had found out through Motoki that Seiya was a friend of her brother's and their families were friends. He was also her boss, which meant he had an excuse to see her every day. They would be having lunch every day, maybe dinner at times if they worked late. And there was no doubt in his mind that he purposely worked late so he could spend more time with Usagi. His line of thoughts only served to encourage his anger.

Then he pictured it again: her smile. It slowly calmed the storm brewing inside of him. But a part of him knew it would only do so much if they were face to face. Heaven knows he'd smash his face in the moment Usagi wasn't looking. As he finally calmed down his thoughts drifted to more random things as he was pulled to dreamland.

Unknown to him, there was someone else who was having an equally frustrating night. As she sat awake at the bedroom window in Seiya's apartment, Usagi found herself thinking about Mamoru and their current relationship; if there was even one left now. She had done the only thing she thought could help, would help in the situation. She distanced herself from him. Unfortunately it didn't help in the slightest. While she didn't burn with jealousy the way Mamoru did, her problem was much worse than jealousy: she was in relationship with someone she didn't love. It wasn't that Seiya wasn't everything a woman could want in a man, he just wasn't her man. And she knew it. They had fooled around during the past few months but she was reluctant to take the next step. Her reluctance hadn't pushed him away however, he was understanding, and THAT was killing her. His anger and frustration at her refusal to sleep with him would have given her an excuse to get out of this loveless relationship, but his love for her made him handle the situation perfectly.

As she sat here alone on his bed she wondered how he was enjoying his vacation. He had gone to Greece with his family on their annual trip, and while her family had been invited, she had turned down the invitation because she didn't feel well with a promise to go next year. Looking back however, her stomach churned again. She had given him the false belief that she wanted this to last forever, or at least until next year, with her promise.

"How did I get myself into this mess?" she asked out loud. No matter what she did her heart longed after a man she couldn't have: Chiba Mamoru. She had honestly admitted to herself that she was missing the days when they would just get together for no reason at all. They'd sit in silence and enjoy each other's company. They'd laugh at each other knowing that it meant nothing. But she remembered her promise as she sighed. If something didn't happen soon she didn't know how much longer she could keep the promise. While she had no thoughts to take Mamoru from his girlfriend, she didn't think she could be happy for him.

Morning had come too quickly for the couple of sorts, but they both used the early Saturday sun to talk a walk to their favourite spot, unbeknownst to the other. It was no surprise when they looked at each other then, shocked to see the other, but a quiet happiness settling within them as the sat on the grass under a big oak tree. She decided to speak up first.

"How have you been?" she asked without turning to look at him. "Miserable. Setsuna's gone again." As the words reached his ears he immediately turned to her to see a flash of hurt cross her features, but she quickly hid it. That hadn't come out as it was supposed to, and he knew how she'd interpret it. He then heard her respond. "What exactly does she do that keeps her away so often? I couldn't imagine being away from the one I loved for so long." She said absently. Mamoru figured she didn't even know she had said it out loud for she didn't take it back. "She's an auditor. The firm she works for is one of the best so they usually get big international companies to audit. It's what she's always wanted to do she said – so who am I to stop her."

They got lost in their own thoughts for a bit before he piped up, "So where's Seiya?" he asked and noted again the flash of hurt which crossed her features. 'If he's hurt her I swear I'll hang, draw and quarter him.' "He's fine; he's in Greece on his family vacation."

'Greece?' he thought to himself, 'Well that's interesting. It's just me and her.' When he finished the thought a broad smile crept across his face, but just as quickly, it faded away. He didn't want to be the cheating boyfriend, and he didn't want her to be the cheating girlfriend either. And before he could disagree with himself, he heard his voice saying against his wishes, "Well how about we go down and visit him, that should cheer you up."

What manner of idiot was he? Clearly he was half an idiot because a whole idiot would have settled with being the cheating boyfriend. He was carrying his love back to her love when he could keep her to himself. She didn't perk up like he thought she would however, but smiled and accepted. What he didn't know however, was that her mind wasn't on going to see Seiya, her mind was on taking a trip with him. She was now more than willing to play the role of the cheating girlfriend.

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**hehehe my first cliffy!!!! well not really lol...but I got a thrill leaving it there....I can see why a whole lot of people here just love cliff hangers!! Fin....will try to have Chapter 6 up later since I'm still working on it....R&R :)**


	6. When in Greece, pray to Aphrodite

The first few days weren't as enjoyable as she thought they would be. Mamoru had kept insisting that she call Seiya and let him know she was here. She had felt stupid for even thinking that she could cheat on Seiya with Mamoru. After all, you could only cheat if the person you want to cheat with is interested in you. From the way Mamoru encouraged her to call Seiya, she figured he had brought her here to get her away while he waited for Setsuna's return. But her thoughts couldn't have been farther from the truth.

Mamoru was having a constant inward battle with himself. He couldn't understand why his lips kept telling her to call Seiya, when his heart was telling him to pick her up, fly halfway across Europe, hide and never return. It wasn't cheating if you were missing, right? 'Stupid mouth. Why can't you keep shut when I want you to?' He knew his encouragement to call Seiya sent the message that he wanted her with Seiya and he could see it in her eyes. She had wanted to be there with him, so why wouldn't the rest of his body operate with his heart??

"Hello may I speak to Seiya please?" She had called him, and not a part of him was happy, but he continued to listen in on her conversation anyways. "No don't worry, I'll call back later." He watched her sigh and cut the power to the cordless phone.

"Well he's not there. He's probably out enjoying his vacation." She turned and said to him. She looked a bit happy and he knew why. "How about we just go sightseeing then? I always heard there were amazing places here. I still can't believe I'm in the land of Zeus and Hera." He laughed but agreed with her. "Ok and we'll just have dinner out somewhere. With lots of cheese!" At this they both laughed. "Let's go change and meet back here in half hour." Agreeing they both went to their separate rooms in the small hotel to prepare for their day out.

Usagi didn't know what to wear though. Sure it was only sightseeing, but she wanted to impress Mamoru. She'd have her work cut out for her though, if Setsuna was the standard he wanted, she was nowhere near it. Feeling down but not out, she decided on a pair of black capris and an electric blue halter top. It was a bit hot outside so she figured she'd forego any make up since she wasn't a big fan of it anyway. But something was missing. Giving herself a look – over, she wondered what it could be. Clothes, check. Underwear, check. Crucifix, check. She saw her black flip flops by the door, check. Then she looked at her hair. If it was one thing Mamoru had constantly teased her about, even now, was her hair. Her Odangos, as he'd call them. They made her look like a child compared to the woman that Setsuna was. Her mind made up, she quickly let down her hair out of the buns. She looked strange, but she was on a mission. With a bit a water and hair grease she slicked back her hair into a bun, wrapping her hair around so she didn't have to deal with it in the heat. When she looked over herself again, she realised that the bun gave her a more regal look. Some studs completed the outfit and with one final glance in the mirror she approved of her new regal look. "This ought to give Setsuna a run for her money." She said out loud. Slipping on her shoes she exited the room to go meet Mamoru. 'Hopefully he likes the new look.' she thought with a smile.

Mamoru, being a man in love, had paid just as much attention to his dress as Usagi. He wore a pair of dark blue jeans with a plain white, fitted short sleeved shirt. 'Well I never claimed to be a fashion expert.' He thought, as he looked himself over while waiting on Usagi. As he saw her coming towards him, a few more thoughts crossed his mind. None had to do with fashion, and every thing to do with his bed. Remembering he was in love and not lust with her, he tried as hard as he could to push the thoughts to the back of his mind: it wasn't working. 'Come on Mamoru stop being a hentai and focus.' Try as he might though it just wasn't happening. Her outfit while simple, had shown just enough cleavage to make him want to see more, and her pants while loose, were fitted enough that her behind was making a cute appearance.

"Earth to Mamoru!" She continued waving her hand in front of him. She grabbed his hand and started pulling him towards the exit, all the while smiling to herself. 'It worked!' she thought, with a bit of self satisfaction. 'Now all I have to do is make him fall in love with me.' That, she didn't feel as confident about. It was easy to make a man drool, but it was quite another thing to make him love you, especially when he was in love with an amazing woman already. Sighing she rethought her strategy. Did she want to steal Mamoru from his girlfriend? What would he think of her if she tried? Suddenly this didn't seem like such a good idea anymore. She knew it wasn't within her to be the cheating girlfriend type. A funny thought crossed her mind however and she acted upon it. She prayed to Aphrodite. 'When in Greece.' She thought with a laugh, and set out on her journey.

"Kawaii!" she exclaimed. All around this place was beautiful. They hadn't visited one location that had disappointed them. "Thank you Mamoru. If you hadn't suggested it I would have never gotten to see this beautiful country." She blushed a bit as he smiled back at her. "That's what friends are for."

'There his mouth went again.' he though. That's NOT what he wanted to say and AGAIN it gave Usagi the impression that he felt absolutely nothing but friendly love for her. "How about we go to dinner now? I'm a bit hungry." At least that was the truth on his part. She half smiled and agreed. They went to a small restaurant. Simple enough that would suit their pockets AND their clothes. It was too far a trip to go back to the hotel to come back out again, so they settled for something quaint and cosy.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but you look really nice today Usagi." He watched her blush and look down. He was trying to make small talk over their meal and finally his mouth and heart were unanimous in what they were saying. He heard her murmur a small thank you before he looked up and his eyes caught something, or someone, and he was livid. It was Seiya.

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**Does this count as a cliff hanger??? I hope so lol I got that rush again leaving it right there so it better count! **

**For anyone in doubt, yes hair grease and water DOES work if you have the right type of hair lol well not all types of hair grease...I guess I'll have to give lessons on how Usagi did it :)**

**Hope you all are still enjoying it...I put out two chapters today!! yay...Will try to work on the others after volleyball tonight. Ja ne and as always R&R..ideas always welcome**


	7. Let cheating dogs lie

"What do you see in him anyways?" he asked. She shrugged her shoulders and gave a nonchalant response. "He's alright I guess. He's ok looking and he'll be raking in the dough big time when his surprise little trust fund kicks in. I can't believe he doesn't even know about it. Whatever though, when we get married it'll be partially mine so no worries. I don't date men if there's nothing in it for me."

He snorted. "You're not even ashamed. One might mistake you for a common whore with your blasé attitude when it comes to men." Shrugging again she merely responded, "So what. If they want to give me their money it's their choice. I don't force them. I simply, subtly coerce them, if you get what I mean." She said with a slight grin on her face. "Right then. You're not a whore. To be technically correct you're a gold digger."

"What does it matter to you? You're getting your precious rabbit, it shouldn't matter what my methods are." He chuckled. "So I guess you think this makes us even on some level?" he stopped to observe the change that came over her face. Satisfied with the obvious shock and slight fear he continued, "Don't forget I got you off scotch free. I made your true name disappear. What do you think Mamoru would say when he hears about all those dirty little deeds his innocent Setsuna was doing before, hmm? I can make all those nightmares reappear as quickly as I made them disappear, got that? If you did what I told you to do Mamoru would have been out of my skin a long time ago and Usagi would have been mine and in my bed thinking only of ME. No, instead you went about your flimsy little way, claiming to be an auditor while living it up on the money I'm giving you. All the while those two kept getting closer and closer. I don't even want to know what would have happened if I hadn't told you to come back. You're out of chances now, so make sure the two of them stay apart. I don't give a rat's ass what you do with Mamoru; just keep him away from Usagi. Got that?"

At the end of his rant he looked up to see a seething Mamoru and a timid Usagi walking in their direction. 'What the hell were they doing here? And together?' Setsuna followed his eyes and her breath caught in her throat. She had exactly the same thought as Seiya. 'Damn it.' Seiya shot her a quick look which told her he had the situation under control.

"Usa! What are you doing here?" he stood up to greet her and held out his arms for a hug. Expecting her uneasiness given the situation, he looked around quickly and introduced Setsuna, pretending he was unaware of any relationship between her and Mamoru. "Oh this is Meioh Setsuna. She's our firm's auditor." He stopped there, knowing if he tried to give too much of an explanation it would look a bit guilty. He looked at Mamoru and saw that he didn't believe him, and convincing Mamoru, especially after being caught with his "girlfriend" was essential to having Usagi believe him so their relationship could continue.

"I'm sorry I never tell you where I'm going Mamoru, but it helps keep the anonymity of the companies which is a requirement of my job." Setsuna had chimed in seeing the disbelief written all over his face. Placing a hand on his shoulder hoping to placate him, it seemed to work. 'Still have my touch.' She thought with smugness.

"How about we all sit here and get to know each other. You never told me you had a boyfriend. And what a surprise that it's Mamoru, my girlfriend's friend." Seiya continued, realising they would have to work in tandem in order to convince the pair. He had come too far to lose Usagi now. She was everything to him and he'd be damned if he lost her, especially to Mamoru.

Still a bit sceptical, Mamoru still held Usagi's hand as he led her away from the table. "Do you want to do this Usagi? Do you believe him?" As he asked a part of him was praying that she didn't. But while the situation was weird, there was nothing even he could do to prove that there was something else going on.

"I don't know. I mean you told me she was an auditor, so maybe it's just a coincidence that they met here." She said while looking down. Even in her mind there was something screaming that it wasn't just a coincidence. There was something more going on. She just didn't know what, and had no evidence to contradict their story. 'Maybe I'm just looking for a reason to break up with Seiya.'

"We'll join them for now, and see how things go. If you feel uncomfortable at any time just say the word and we'll go back to the hotel, ok?" Nodding in compliance, she let him lead her back to the table.

As they approached the table Seiya got up to pull out a chair for her, completely ignoring Mamoru. He placed a kiss on lips, a show of territory more than a display of affection. 'That should let him know who she belongs to.'

They declined food and instead engaged in conversation. "So what are you doing here Usa? How did you get here?" he had a feeling he knew the answer but he wanted a chance to be proved wrong. "Mamoru and I were talking. I told him you were here on vacation so he suggested that we should come to see you. I called your home for you today but you were out. I guess I know where you are now." Her final statement came out a bit more bitter than she intended.

He knew he had his work cut out for him if he wanted Usagi to believe him. And his mind, quick as ever, thought of something. "Why don't you come stay with me and my family Usa? We can enjoy the vacation like we had originally intended. I'm sure Mamoru and Setsuna would love to spend some time alone now that they have both found each other."

A visible tick went through Mamoru's jaw. He knew what Seiya was doing, and it just fuelled the belief that both he and his girlfriend were lying. About what, he didn't know. But something didn't sit right with him and he was determined to find out.

Uasgi looked across to Mamoru for comfort and a bit of advice. 'What do I do? I know he's lying but I don't know about what.' Looking in Mamoru's eyes she found a bit of comfort. The look he gave her told her he didn't believe them either, but they knew they didn't have a choice.

"I'll come over tomorrow but I won't stay. Mamoru and I have already payed for our rooms and I don't want the money to go to waste." Feeling a bit braver she stood and kissed him on the cheek. "I'll call before I come over." Turning to Mamoru she continued, "I'm feeling a bit tired, let's head back to the hotel. See you tomorrow." She flashed a smile towards Seiya and nodded towards Setsuna in polite acknowledgement.

Taking her hand Mamoru led her towards the exit. There was only one thought on his mind: finding out what exactly was going on between her boyfriend and his girlfriend. The only problem was, he didn't know what he was looking for and therefore didn't know where to start. They decided to walk back to the hotel, as it allowed them to spend a bit more time together and talk about the new development.

As they walked Mamoru thought about how Usagi had looked at him for reassurance. It had made him needed. It made him feel wanted. It made him feel loved. And for the first time, just like Usagi had almost a year ago, he realised he didn't just like her; he loved her. After they had walked the majority of the way in silence, Mamoru piped up and asked a question that was gnawing at his mind, but knew it was essential if they were to get anywhere.

Usagi couldn't believe what he had just asked her. How could he when she had just turned down Seiya openly. He really did love Setsuna then. He probably was only making sure Seiya didn't hurt her before, but now he had thought it over and was starting to believe him. Tears started to well up in her eyes. She knew she shouldn't be crying but this time she couldn't help it. This time she had allowed herself to believe that Mamoru was starting to feel something for her, but again it turned out the same way. Openly crying she began to turn away with no particular destination in mind. She had to get away from here; she had to get away from him.

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**o0o0o what did Mamoru ask Usagi that's got her crying?? stay tuned!!! remember to R&R :) Ideas always welcome!!! **


	8. So much for that paid hotel room

**Bold part in here is a memory. Just for anyone who doesn't pick it up :) Anyways here's chapter 8!!! Why did Mamoru make poor Usagi cry...meanie :( enjoy lol **

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She had to admit, lunch was great. Greek food had lived up to the high expectations she had from hearing Makoto talk about it. Now as they sat on the beach she looked over the sea to see the waves gently breaking on the shoreline. Last night had left her with a bittersweet taste in her mouth. Closing her eyes she sent up another prayer to Aphrodite and hoped that she answered. Laughing in her head, she wondered about her sanity. Here she was praying to a mythical goddess and, better yet, hoping that those prayers got answered. 'Next thing you know I'll be imagining myself as Serenity dreaming of Endymion.'

Looking around her eyes fell on Seiya who was fast asleep on a towel. When she had arrived at his house in the morning, he suggested that they spend the day at the beach. Thinking on it now it hadn't been a good idea. While he didn't flirt with anyone, she had seen him openly admiring other women. She wasn't jealous; she'd have to at least have some sort of feelings for him to feel that way. What she was however, was upset that he'd claim to love her, having accepted her physical imperfections, and still had the gall to act this way right in front of her. It was preposterous.

She stood up and decided to take a stroll down the beach. In her one piece swim suit she felt out of place, over dressed even, which was funny considering she was at the beach. It was a white, strapless swim suit with a floral pattern from the waist to the right hip which had been made out of a sheer material. Her hair was still in the bun, but it wasn't as nice as it was yesterday. It was now messy as some strands of hair were coming loose, and her hair grease and water combo didn't provide indefinite hold. That didn't matter now however. Now all she could think about was last night. She was thankful that this beach was private, as it meant the rich people here were too caught up in their own worlds to pay her any attention and for that she was grateful.

Tears rolled down her face as she replayed every scene from yesterday in her mind. She had promised she wouldn't cry today. She was going to be happy no matter what and crying was NOT helping her case at all. When she got far enough away she sat down close to the shoreline so that the breaking waves came up on her feet. Try as she might however the tears kept coming silently down her face, hugging every curve and contour as they made their way to her chin.

She was in love with him. She knew it without a shadow of a doubt now and there was no turning back. Was she setting herself up for more heartache? Probably, but it didn't stop her heart from loving him. And now she missed him. Their day yesterday had given her a sense of nostalgia. It reminded her so much of the times they had shared before any of this mess had started. What he had asked of her still shocked her, but she knew it was for the best. Putting aside her heartache for a moment, she had looked at the situation through unbiased eyes. Had she overreacted? Under the circumstances she thought not.

"I was wondering where you got off to." Her head snapped up and she looked into his eyes as he smiled. "Sorry I just needed some time away. I'm still not accustomed to being surrounded by wealthy people; it's quite intimidating." She tried to smile and managed to put a fake one on her face. He sat next to her, putting his arm around her to draw her closer. "Don't worry, you'll get used to it when you're with me. You'll see they aren't any different from you normal people."

'You normal people? What the hell?' That one statement gave her so much insight into his thinking, and it scared her. 'So we're classified as normal people now?' She didn't know how much more of this charade she could take, but she hoped it ended soon for her sake. Unwillingly and uncomfortably falling into his embrace, she allowed her eyes to close and let her mind drift. As usual, it drifted straight to Mamoru.

In another part of the world, Mamoru was now trying to drift off to sleep after a long flight home. Yesterday had been amazing. 'Until we but up on that tool.' He thought. He almost let his anger take over until once again, he thought of her smile. He was determined to be the only one who got that smile. There was no one else worthy of her smile. No one else worthy to kiss her. No one else worthy to be with her. He wanted her for himself and damn it he was going to have her. His mind went to her.

What was she doing now? 'Hopefully not enjoying her time with Seiya." He scoffed. There that name was again. He should have done what had come to his mind originally and just taken her away from everyone and kept her to himself and live happily ever after. But right now he had more pressing issues to deal with. Issues like finding out what his girlfriend and Seiya were doing together. Their story was plausible, but even the greatest buildings have flaws.

After dropping Usagi off at Seiya's house, he had taken a flight straight home. His mind had been a mess on the flight and he had therefore been unable to sleep. Now he lay in his bed, the moon shining down as his mind drifted back to her. He smiled. He knew she hadn't understood what he told her, but she had agreed after a bit of pleading.

"**No wait Usagi please don't go!" he cried as he reached out to grab her arm. "Let me go Mamoru, please. I don't want to do this anymore." She was more than willing to hightail it out of there due to the sheer embarrassment she felt. "Please Usagi, hear me out." He waited until she faced him to continue. "I just don't want you to be hurt. Please understand. I don't believe what he's saying but I have no way to prove otherwise." His eyes bore into hers, begging for her to believe what he was saying.**

"**Then how can you ask me to go and stay with him. Of course I mind staying with him Mamoru. I don't believe what he's saying either. But you're just going to ask me to stay with him even though he may be cheating on me with YOUR girlfriend. Or did you forget that part?"**

"**No I didn't forget." He said as he looked down solemnly. "Come let's go back to the hotel and finish discuss this. I'm just asking for a chance to say what I need to, please Usagi." His heartfelt plea reached her ears and they continued on to the hotel. He put his arm around her as the walked as all the insecurities and fears she had been feeling a moment ago were lain to rest for the time being. **

**Walking straight to her room, Usagi gave him permission to stay so that they could finish talk. They sat at the foot of the bed, not sure where to pick up from; both too nervous to say what they really wanted to say. **

"**There's something going on between them that isn't quite right. I'm not sure what it is, but I know it's there. Even if there is, my primary concern is making sure he doesn't hurt you." He looked down as he talked to her. He wasn't sure with this close proximity in such an intimate setting if he could trust himself to look into her eyes. She looked at him in shock. "But what about your girlfriend? She's probably cheating on you. Aren't you the least bit concerned?" **

"**To tell you the truth Usagi, I haven't been in love with her for a few months now. I don't know why, we've just grown apart, you know?" She nodded in response but she didn't understand. She loved Mamoru and no matter what she tried she couldn't love him any less. In fact, the more she tried to keep him away the more she loved him. As he continued she finally saw him look up at her. "I'll be fine, but I'm worried about what this will do to you. I care about you Usagi, and I'll hurt him if he has done anything to hurt you."**

**She was surprised by the passion with which he spoke. There was a finality to his words as well. Unfortunately she took one look in his eyes and fell in love all over again. 'Careful Usagi, he may not be in love with Setsuna but that doesn't mean he loves you.' Her mind cautioned her and sadness threatened to take over again. **

**As if sensing this Mamoru shocked them both. He kissed her. Full on the lips with all the love and passion he was feeling for her. Getting over the initial shock, she kissed him back with equal vigour and passion. They both couldn't believe that it was happening. After a few moments they withdrew from the kiss and noticed their position: he was lying on top of her. With a slight blush she closed her eyes and began apologising. **

"**No please don't apologise." He started, but he didn't know how to get out the last words he so desperately wanted to say. Steeling his nerves her cupped her cheek with one hand he looked in her eyes, mouth opened and ready to confess. "I....I....Usagi I..." It wouldn't come out. She giggled, for she hoped that he was stuttering over the words that she desperately wanted to hear. Would she finally get to hear them from the man she longed to hear them from? **

**Her giggling was contagious and he chuckled a bit himself. It seemed to relax him a bit and he tried again. "Usagi I....I love you." Unable to stop he continued his confession. "I don't think I've loved anyone the way I love you now." He stopped as she closed her eyes and blushed. "No please look at me." She opened her eyes, but put her finger to his lips. Seeing his surprise written all over his face she said, "I love you too, but this situation, what's happening here, there's nothing we can do about it. We would be no better if we cheat on them simply because we think they are cheating on us."**

**For a moment his heart broke in two. He had finally gotten the nerve to tell her his feelings and she was turning him down. Then a thought occurred to him, and he knew what he needed to do. He just hoped she trusted him enough to let him do what he had to. **

"**Do you trust me Usa?" he looked into her eyes hoping they'd give away her true answer even if she lied with her lips. However she only needed a second to come up with an answer. "Yes." Sighing, he knew what he needed to do. "Then go stay with him. Trust me on this." Staring up at him she was about to cry. Was he leaving her? Why had she been so stupid? Here he was professing his love for her and she was worried about cheating on someone who was probably cheating on her. **

"**You called me Usa." Smiling at him they both realised their true feelings were out in the open and there was no turning back. Putting his forehead and hers, he rubbed her nose with his in a gentle manner. She closed her eyes to enjoy the tender moment. "Trust me Usa. Go stay with him and I promise I'll say those words again to you without any hindrance surrounding us." **

**While she didn't want to go with Seiya, her heart cried out at the promise of hearing those words again. She agreed, albeit reluctantly. He didn't explain anything to her, but the promise was enough to keep her for the time being. After she had encouraged him to go change into his night wear, he came back and climbed into bed with her, where they spent the rest of the night silently in each others arms until sleep took over. **

He had relished the feeling of having her in his arms and knew there was no one else he wanted there. There was also no one else he wanted to enjoy that feeling. God help the person who decided to try to take her from him; there'd be hell to pay. "Usa." Using the image of her in his mind, he allowed her face to usher him off to sleep with one final thought. 'I promised I'd say those words again Usa and I intend to keep that promise.'

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**hope you enjoyed the chapter!! :) R&R let me know what you think :) **


	9. You're the brother I always had

It was a month since the day she had come down here with Mamoru. Looking back, it was also almost a year since she found herself in this situation. This was harder than she thought though, for while it was easy in the beginning to wait until she heard from him, she began to doubt him when nothing seemed to be happening. She found herself thinking that maybe he had said what he had to escape from her. He wanted to get to be with his girlfriend without having to look out for her wellbeing; he wanted to get her out of his skin. But the more she thought about it the more illogical it sounded. Mamoru just wasn't that type of person. Setsuna was still here as well so that fact helped push the thought away some more. And with the way he had kissed her, she knew what he felt for her was real. That was what kept her holding on while she was here.

But now it was time to go back home. She hadn't seen Motoki in a long time and she missed him. Her brother, ever the pain in the ass, was home as well since he had too much work to finish so he didn't come on vacation. She had to go see him as well. She realised that if there was anyone she could talk to about this, it would be him. He knew Seiya and she knew he could trust him to keep his mouth shut. He would advise her properly without feeling he needed to protect his sister or his friend. The quality probably came from being a lawyer.

"Ready to go Usa?" As she heard his voice call from outside her door a bit of butterflies decided to prance around in her stomach. There was a nervous excitement in the air as she was finally going home to see Mamoru and finally know what he had figured out about the situation involving his girlfriend and her "boyfriend". Pulling her suitcases behind her and opening the door, she exited her room, following him and his family as they made their way towards the airport.

As the plane touched down she didn't know what she was happier about: the fact that she was finally home, could be in her own apartment and away from Seiya, or being able to see Mamoru after so long. She couldn't decide. But after hours of flying it didn't matter; she just wanted to meet a mattress and demonstrate her love for that mattress by sleeping for a few hours uninterrupted. It wasn't meant to be however, for when she got in the car Seiya took the route straight to his own apartment. She didn't feel like arguing tonight, and if Mamoru had this problem solved soon she would be back in her own apartment, or better yet, his apartment.

At the thought she smiled. Seiya caught it, and thinking she was happy to be going home with him, smiled along with her and said, "I know it probably feels so good to be back home. I'm the same way as well even though we do this every year. Nothing beats home, especially when you're going to be with the woman of your dreams. We'll get to sleep in each others' arms again." He didn't dare bring up what happened in Greece though. He was still walking a fine line with her on that situation and with her finally staying in his apartment again, he had the chance to make her believe him and get Mamoru out of her system once and for all. He had been quite happy the morning after to hear that Mamoru was leaving as it left him and Usagi all alone. Knowing that Mamoru didn't believe him or his girlfriend meant he could influence her, and he did not need that. With him gone however, he could influence Usagi as he saw fit. But it was turning out to be a more difficult proposition, especially since she decided to take a separate room from his. No matter though, after a month away, and the smile she just showed him, he was fully convinced that she was coming around to him and soon they would be on their way towards a life together.

Inwardly Usagi cringed as she heard him speak, but kept her smile in place and nodded along as if agreeing with what he was saying. Too tired to think about anything else she just prepared for her day tomorrow. First she'd go see Motoki and make sure he was still alive. He wasn't too happy with the Seiya relationship in the first place and knowing the distance she had kept from the arcade for the past few months, she didn't know where their relationship stood in all honesty. Then she'd take the plunge and go see her brother. Hopefully he could help make some sense of her own situation and give her some much needed advice and comfort. She was long pass the crying stage, but she felt she still needed a shoulder to lean on, and right now he was that shoulder. If she had enough time left, she'd go see Mamoru. She needed to let him know she was back, and also needed a reassurance that he still felt the same way. There was only so much convincing her own mind could do; she needed to hear it from him.

Later that night she pushed down the bile in her throat as she was lying next to Seiya. He had put his arm around her waist as he slept behind her. Thinking back on it, she cursed the day she thought that she should use him as a way of escaping her feelings for Mamoru. It was no use dwelling on it however. She calmed herself and forced herself to sleep.

On her way to see her brother, she thought over her meeting with Motoki. "That went better than expected." She said to no one. Well she didn't really know what to expect so she feared the worse so as not to be disappointed if it had happened. He had been a bit upset with her, but after talking to him about her indecision about staying with Seiya he had perked up. 'Way to not show you don't like the guy Motoki.' She thought with a laugh. She didn't tell him the whole situation though, but knew once it worked out she would let him know.

Now she had a more important task at hand: telling her brother the whole situation. She wasn't as sure of doing this as she was yesterday but she knew it had to be done. She had to tell him the whole truth. 'And nothing but the truth.' Laughing again at her own private joke she realised that she was in a good mood despite her current predicament. She figured it was because she was finally getting a load of her shoulders by finally talking to someone else.

Nearing her brother's house she took a deep breath before ringing the doorbell. She saw his wife peep out the window before answering. "Usagi! It's so good to see you again! It's been a while hasn't it?" She was beautiful, but she was shy and her shyness seemed to exaggerate her beauty more. "Well don't just stand there come in. Your brother is in his office so you can either wait here and let me get him or go to him." She thought about it for a minute before deciding to use his office as it offered the privacy she needed. It's not that she didn't trust her sister – in – law; she just wanted to speak with him alone as brother and sister.

She braced herself as she knocked on his door and heard him give permission to enter. "Hi." She said timidly. The butterflies in her stomach were now doing a Russian folk dance and she almost felt nauseous. Looking up upon hearing her voice, her brother wore an expression of surprise and love. The surprise because she guessed he was expecting his wife; the love because she knew despite how hard he was on her, he loved her dearly.

His blue eyes pierced her own as he quickly walked over to her and embraced her. "I've missed you." He said, the emotion thick in his voice. He placed both hands on her cheeks and kissed her forehead with a long kiss while closing his eyes. Her hands around him she felt her own emotions starting to get the better of her, but she managed to keep them in check. "I've missed you too Saphir."

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**yay another chapter!! :) Let me just say at this point though, I have a whole new respect for all you authors out there who put out fics, especially multi chapter fics....sometimes even when you have all the ideas in your head, and you know where you want the story to go, putting it into words and a sequence that the readers will enjoy is REALLY difficult. So a BIG shout out to all you writers out there! And to the readers...I know what it's like so that's why I'm putting out chapters as quickly as I can. It's not easy being a reader, having to wait on an exciting story (and I hope this story is exciting everyone lol). So a big thank you to readers who keep reading as well!!! Just something I thought I'd add now that I've experienced both sides of the coin.**

**quick note: you'll realise that I've kept the story to a few characters, with only a mention of other people here and there (like using Makoto for example)...I just want to keep the story simple without having too many characters involved that it becomes a mass of personalities that the readers, and I, have to sort through. Maybe for my next fic I'll do multiple characters :) as always R&R :) **


	10. Todai moto kurashi

"I hope I'm not interrupting but I could use a listening ear and some advice right about now." They were now sitting on the small couch in his office as they began to talk. "You know I'm always here for you Usa. Now tell me what's on your mind, but if my guess is good this will probably be about Seiya; am I right?" A look of pain graced her features, and this time she didn't hide it. She refused to hide it. She came here to open up to her brother so it was no use trying to hide her emotions.

Unfortunately Saphir grew angry when he saw that pain, and started to swear. "God help him Usa, if he's done anything to hurt you I'll make him sing soprano for the rest of his damned life." They may have been friends for as long as he could remember, but she was his sister. His flesh and blood at this moment was far more important to him than a friendship, especially if that friend was hurting his sister.

"Yes and no. It's partially my fault anyway." Before she could continue he had stood up and cut her off. "How could you think that it's your fault? He has no excuse to hurt you!" Sighing she put up her hands defensively. "Just...just hear me out for a minute. I'll tell you everything and then you can give your opinion. Please don't interrupt. I'm nervous as it is right now and I really want you to hear everything. Don't worry about hurting my feelings; I want to know what to do about this situation." Nodding, he complied and took his seat on the couch.

Sitting silently he listened to her recount about her feelings for Mamoru, the hurt that came from the unrequited love, using Seiya as a means to get over Mamoru, and now Seiya's apparent infidelity. He didn't realise how much work had took him out of his sister's life. He had known she was with Seiya, and their families had approved. However, the strong feelings for Mamoru he had not expected. They were friends even though it hadn't started that way; the few times he saw them together that's exactly what they looked like. But as she spoke of Mamoru there was a certain amount of love she had in her voice, which was coupled with sadness, which he figured came from the situation as it currently stood. It was wrong on her part however, to have used Seiya in the way that she did, but it didn't make it any better for him to be cheating on her. That thought made him angry again. How could his own best friend be cheating on his sister? It wasn't conclusive but he found no other alternative. Then a thought occurred to him: she had said she saw him with the firm's auditor, but as far as he knew, the firm's head auditor was a male. In fact most of them were. The few female auditors were either in their 40s, married, or both. Something was wrong here.

"Wait a second. Who was the auditor you said he was with?" he asked. "Meioh Setsuna. Why do you ask?" Confused, he tried to sort out in his mind what was going on. "Saph, what is it?" Snapping out of his thoughts he looked her straight in the eye. "Are you sure that's the name?" "Yea, she is Mamoru's girlfriend. I met her almost a year ago when she came back from auditing another company. Apparently she works for a big firm so they get a lot of international companies, which keeps her overseas." It sounded plausible to him, but why did that name ring a bell? He was sure he had heard that name before and it wasn't associated with auditing in their firm. There wasn't an auditor who worked there by that name, and certainly none young enough to be Mamoru's girlfriend. Not being able to put a finger on it though, he decided to leave it alone for the time being. 'I'll check it out later some more.' The uneasiness he felt demanded that he did.

"So what do I do now, Saph? I'm in love with my good friend who is also in love with me, while your best friend is in love with me although he is probably cheating on me with my good friend's girlfriend. How did my life become such a mess?" her shoulders slumped as she leaned forward to rest her elbows on her knees. Wiping her face a few times with her palms, she groaned as she got up and walked around, trying to ease the emotions warring within her.

"Can I ask a question before I give any advice?" At her slight nod he continued. "Have you had sex with either of them?" If he knew Seiya as well as he thought he did, she would have felt pressure to sleep with him, but her answer shocked him. "No." She chuckled a bit before continuing. "And that's what makes it so hard surprisingly. I don't love Seiya. I don't even have any remote sort of feelings for him. Sure I care for him, but it's not in a way that I can have a relationship with him, let alone sleep with him. And he's been so understanding, or so I thought. Maybe that was why he had to cheat on me. I mean I know I'm in this relationship for the wrong reason, and I don't love him, but that doesn't give him the right to cheat because I don't put out."

"Calm down Usa, I just wanted to make sure no OTHER complications came along to the drama baby girl. It is a bit a surprising though. The Seiya I know would have tried to get into your pants long time ago, so maybe he actually loves you. Which I can appreciate because I'd kill him without a second thought if he only wanted you for sex. Now sit down and listen to me." Only then did she realise that somewhere mid rant she had gotten up and was now pacing the floor. She sat next to him and leaned her head on his shoulder. Putting his arm around her shoulder and pulling her closer he comforted her. "Where did I go wrong Saph?" "You mean besides getting into a relationship with a man you didn't love to get over a man you did? Oh, nowhere." She slapped his thigh playfully. "Behave and be serious you twit." She couldn't help it however; she burst out laughing. It was contagious and he started laughing as well. When they had both calmed down he became serious and pulled her back towards him. "Look Usa, I can't tell you exactly what to do. I'm in the same boat as you and Mamoru; something doesn't feel right about him and that Setsuna woman being together and I'll help you find out what she really is to him. But be prepared for any answer that either I or Mamoru may give to you. What if it really was an innocent meeting? Will Mamoru stay with her? What about you and Seiya? Will you stay with him once he's innocent, and Mamoru doesn't leave Setsuna, just to get over him?"

Thinking over the questions in her mind, she found that she didn't really have the answers for any of them. If Setsuna and Seiya were as innocent as they claimed, then Mamoru would have no reason to leave Setsuna for her. And could she really stay with Seiya if he wasn't cheating? It would have been a nice excuse to leave, but what if he was innocent. It seemed like a lose – lose situation to her. If they were innocent then she'd still have to live without Mamoru's love, for even though she could leave Seiya for whatever reasons, Mamoru wouldn't leave an innocent girlfriend.

'I haven't been in love with her for a few months now...' His words came back to her and struck up a renewed vigour within her. "He loves me Saph. I know he does. He promised me he'd tell me how he truly felt once this was all over and I'm holding him to that promise. As for Seiya, even if he's innocent I'm going to leave him. I don't love him and it will only hurt me the more I stay and pretend to. It's not fair to either of us." Saying it out loud had sparked some confidence in her and in her words.

"Seems like you've always known what to do. So what do you need me for?" he asked with a laugh. "Shut up." She replied, sticking her tongue out. He was right though. He had hardly given her any advice. He simply asked a few questions and the answers came flying from her own mind. But he was wrong about one thing: she did need him. This was her brother and she'd be damned if she kept him in the dark anymore. If she had involved him from the start maybe this would have turned out differently. But as it stood she was grateful that he held no resentment towards her for using his best friend the way she did. This was exactly what she had needed, so with a contended sigh she sat in her brother's embrace for a while longer.

The same thoughts were going through his mind as he sat holding his sister. Work had taken a toll on their relationship, even though he knew she was blaming herself for it. From now on he vowed that he'd pay more attention to her. There was no way that this situation should have been going on with his sister and his best friend right beneath his nose. He still couldn't get over the shock of hearing her deep feelings for Mamoru and that was what made him saddest. Starting now, he would do everything to get her out of this predicament with as little pain as possible. Seiya on the other hand, would be leaving with as much pain as humanly possible if he had done anything to hurt his little sister. He closed his eyes as he savoured the feeling of having his sister so close to him. He would protect her at any costs.

When it was time to go she looked at him nervously and asked, "Come with me to see Mamoru. I want him to meet you properly for the first time and not just in passing. I want him to know that you know and that you'll be helping us." She heard him laugh and respond. "You're not wasting any time. But if it's what you want I suppose I can appease you this one time. Let me get a proper introduction to the man who is stealing my sister's heart." Kissing his wife goodbye, they set out towards Mamoru's apartment.

A knock was heard at an apartment door a while later. 'Who the hell could that be at this time?' Granted it was still early in the night, but the only people who would be here were, well, somewhere else. Opening up the door he saw a face that he hadn't expected to see. "Hi Mamoru."

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**another chapter!! :) I incorporated her brother because it made sense as I needed someone close to her that she could off load all her problems on. Sometimes I think that males help us as females more with our problems than other females can. Especially older brothers (fathers just don't get it at times lol)....so the chapter was dedicated to my big brother who was the inspiration behind Saphir's personality. Protective yet not placating. Caring yet unbiased in his advice. Love you big brother :D**

**quick note: the chapter's name - Todai moto kurashi - literally means the bottom of the lighthouse is dark. Things that are happening near you are often hard to see, just like the base of the lighthouse is not lit. It is a reflection of how far apart Usagi and Saphir are in their relationship. :) Just general knowledge in case anyone wanted to know**

**chapter 11 will be out tomorrow evening at the earliest. :) Thanks for still reading! Love you guys**


	11. Lawyer turned Judge and Jury

"Usa!" he lunged forward capturing her in a fierce hug, completely oblivious to Saphir's presence. He was about to lean down and kiss her when someone clearing their throat caught his attention. Head snapping up, he noticed with slight embarrassment that her brother was standing right behind them. "Sorry I didn't notice you there." He said, hand behind his head in typical nervous fashion. "Clearly." He responded with a smirk on his face. "Heh. Come on in." Moving aside, he allowed them to enter. He was intrigued however, for he had never really had any previous interaction with her brother so he didn't understand his presence here with her. He dismissed it however as her plainly using her brother as accompaniment and nothing else.

Sitting in the living room, Mamoru couldn't help but look at Usagi. Her skin had tanned ever so slightly from being in the Greek sun and it contrasted beautifully with her blonde hair. "I see you're admiring my sister." Again his head snapped to look to her brother and saw another smirk on his face. Blushing, he looked down with a slight smile on his face. "Behave Saphir!" admonished Usagi, as she moved over to sit next to Mamoru. "What? What good am I as a big brother if I can't give my little sister's boyfriend some heat?" he said with a laugh. Now it was her turn to blush.

Mamoru looked up with surprise written all over his face. "Boyfriend?" he asked, looking between Usagi and her brother. "Let's avoid the drama Mamoru. I know about this whole little love triangle, sorry, rectangle, which you and my sister are involved in. Before we do anything I want a few straight answers from you." His face took a serious look to indicate that jokes were over.

A part of Mamoru was scared, but another part was ecstatic. He had never gone through the whole "I'm going to kill you if you hurt my sister" routine with Setsuna, who was his only girlfriend so far, so not knowing what to expect scared him a bit. Having never really met Saphir, he didn't know if he would actually kill him, and the look on his face was not helping to dispel that fear. But the other part of him was ecstatic that she told him about their relationship and he was deemed worthy enough to require this "talk". It made him love her even more, knowing that she loved him and thought it necessary to tell her brother, who was her current boyfriend's best friend. Taking a deep breath, he braced for the onslaught of questions.

"Don't hurt my sister." "Saphir that's not a question!" shaking her head she let him do his thing. "What do you want with my sister? She's not going to end up in your bed if that's what you think. And if you even THINK of doing anything like Seiya you can forget having children." The way Usagi was eyeing him let him know she wasn't too happy with trying to scare Mamoru. He knew Mamoru's intentions were good but he'd never had the chance to grill Seiya, which looking back could have made the world of difference, so he took the opportunity with Mamoru. He gave in though, and instead carried on with the real purpose of coming here.

"Alright. Alright. Let's get down to business. I've never met you officially before but we do know of each other so we'll start there." He stood up and extended his hand towards Mamoru. "I'm Saphir, Usa's older brother." Standing as well, Mamoru completed the handshake. "I'm Chiba Mamoru. I'm not quite sure what I am to Usa at this point but I'd like to believe we're more than friends." "Well then we'll need to sort out this nonsense so you two can figure out what you are. Seiya may be my best friend, but she's my sister, and her happiness is first and foremost in my mind." Sitting again he continued, "Getting straight to the point, the name of your current girlfriend does ring a bell to me but not as an auditor in our firm. And as I told Usa, the female auditors in our firm are not your type, believe me. It's tugging at my mind but I can't quite put a finger on it."

"I don't think I'd be much help in figuring out anything about her though. I've always believed her when she told me that she was estranged from her family and was making it on her own. Being that I've seen her records at the hospital I had no reason to doubt her. Now that it's coming into question I really wish I had asked her more about it and not taken her at face value." Shaking his head as he thought over the woman he was currently in a relationship with, he felt Usagi place a comforting hand over his. "She didn't give you any reason to doubt her so it's not your fault. Seiya never gave me a reason to doubt him either, until that day we saw them together." Turning towards her brother, she asked, "How can we prove they are lying?"

"To be honest I'm not sure. I can't ask Seiya as I'm sure he'll just deny everything and it will make him cover his steps. That is, IF he is indeed guilty of anything. Before we say or do anything further however, I'll have to ask you the same questions I asked Usa. What's going to happen if their story checks out? Will you just leave my sister and run back to your girlfriend?" Not even taking a second to think Mamoru smiled and answered. "I'm staying with Usa no matter what happens. I promised her she'd know how I truly felt once this was over, and I meant that. No matter the outcome of our searches, I plan to keep her; if she'll have me of course." He finished with a slight blush. Never had he been this open or forceful with his feelings towards anyone, even his own girlfriend. But something about Usagi provoked him to act and feel this passionately and he didn't want to hold back. He wanted to show her exactly how much he loved her, knowing that they had lost a lot of time together by being oblivious to the other's feelings. There was nothing now that was going to come between them however; Setsuna and Seiya would have to take second place.

Accepting his word as truth, he looked at Mamoru and knew the expression on his face. He knew it well since he went through the same thing with his wife. 'Well except a whole love rectangle.' Not realising he snickered out loud because of his thoughts, the two lovers were snapped out of their momentary infatuation and looking straight at him. "Inside joke." The only thing he could say to explain his snicker. Rolling her eyes at him she piped up. "Now that we know where we stand, let's find out how exactly we're going to go about this."

"I don't really have a clear cut plan but I'll see what I can get from work with regards to the identity of Setsuna. Unfortunately Usa..." the ringing of her phone cut him off. "Sorry." Checking the caller ID she realised it was Seiya. She had only told him about going to Motoki so she knew he was calling to figure out where she was. Showing Saphir the phone, he took it from her and motioned for Mamoru to be quiet. "What's going on Kou?" He listened to Seiya ask for this whereabouts of his sister and his blood boiled. He may still be innocent but it was doubtful. "Don't worry she's with me. Actually she's going to be staying with me for a while. The wife is going to go visit her parents so I'm going to need some help taking care of my daughter." Giving his salutations, he ended the call. "So....looks like you'll be staying with Mamoru for a while." He said with a smile on his face.

"WHAT? But you just said I'll be staying with you." With her mouth opening and shutting like a fish, Usagi didn't know what else to say. She didn't deny that she would love to stay with Mamoru, but she didn't foresee it happening this way. "I know, but Seiya has full reign to come check on me at my house since we're friends. I'm trying to get him out of your life as subtly and quickly as possible. I don't want you staying with him anymore so I did the only thing I could think of at the time. Now I'll have to send my wife to her parents and hope she'll understand. I won't tell her the whole story but if I want her to go I'll have to tell her some of it." He looked at Usagi as if asking for approval. With a sigh she agreed. She didn't want to stay with Seiya and if this was what it took then it was fine by her. Then a questioned crossed her mind. "What if Setsuna comes by?" They hadn't thought about that. And as if on queue, there was a knock on the door, causing three heads to look around.

"Hey Mamoru open up it's me. I need to talk to you."

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**ahhh sorry this one came out later than I said it would. :( my wrist was hurting from a mishap at volleyball so forgive me :( but here is chapter 11...I'll spend all of tomorrow trying to finish as many chapters as I can so the story can move on and you can enjoy it. We're getting to the climax of the story and the finale. **

**Hope you enjoyed the chapter! I made some interaction with Mamoru and Saphir since they are the only two in the story to know Setsuna (even though Saphir doesn't remember how he knows her) and their relationship will be essential to them getting to the bottom of the situation. That's all I'll say though :p can't give too much away...Ja ne **


	12. Don't touch me there

Somewhere along the line it had started raining softly. Mamoru had gone into the kitchen to fix them some drinks. The pitter patter of the rain drops outside on the balcony seemed to be playing a ballad to go along with his feelings. 'I thought she trusted me.' "We've known each other for so long, why doesn't she trust me?" Not realising his last set of thoughts was said out loud he was surprised to hear Usagi answer him.

"It's not that I don't trust you Motoki. I...we wanted as little people involved as possible; at least until it is over. The more people who know, the more chance Seiya, or Setsuna has of realising we're digging around behind his back." "So you don't trust me. That statement alone says it." Sighing she tried again to explain. "Motoki, none of our friends know what is going on. Only my brother knows and that's for obvious reasons. We don't even have any set plans as to how we are going to do this. All we know is that Setsuna may not be who she says she is; Seiya may know something about it since he's helping to cover it up. Saphir is going to try to see what he can find at work without alerting Seiya. As for me and Mamoru: I'll be moving in with him thanks to Saphir, and he will be working with my brother in trying to figure out who exactly his girlfriend is. That's all there is so far. I'm really sorry if you felt I didn't trust you, but now you know exactly what's going on."

Thankful that he was finally included, he felt a bit calmer. "Apology accepted. You've got to remember, I'm accustomed to Mamoru not getting into the deep, touchy feelings with me even though we talk about everything else. But when you don't tell me it hurts."

"Alright enough reminiscing." Came Saphir's voice. "Since you're here and you know about this put your brain to work and let's come up with a plan, or at least tell us what you can do." "I have no clue. I know even less about Setsuna than Mamoru. I only know what he's told me. She's an auditor with a successful firm and is estranged from her family."

"Which is as much as I know." Mamoru said as he picked up on the conversation. Setting the drinks down he sat beside Usagi and put an arm around her as she leaned on him. "Straying for a minute, Saph could you bring my suitcase that I took with me from his apartment? And a few other things from my apartment?" Nodding in agreement he looked at Mamoru. "You know you can't be like this in public." he said as more of a statement than anything else. "Yea I know, hence why I'll do it as much as I can when we're home." He loved how that sounded: home. It may have been put on them suddenly but he got excited when Saphir told them they'd be moving in together. And then his dreams came tumbling down when Motoki asked him, "What are you going to do about Setsuna? Doesn't she spend the weekends sometimes?" They hadn't thought about that, and they didn't know what to do. It'd be too suspicious to tell her not to spend the weekends anymore but they all still wanted Usagi away from Seiya.

"How about you stay with me Usagi? And before you kill me Mamoru, you'll have an open house pass to come see her whenever. Seiya won't know where she is, and you won't have to do anything to raise suspicions with Setsuna. You can even spend the weekends if you like, once she isn't staying with you. You can always pick her up from the arcade and take her to work from there so Seiya believes she's still with you Saphir." He looked among the three to see if they would agree. They had no other options available, and it still allowed them the freedom to do what they needed so they agreed.

"Unfortunately Mamoru, you're going to have to keep up the good boyfriend act, as I was saying, when you're in public. Luckily for you you're not one for public displays of affection." Saphir said with slight sarcasm as he looked at their current position. "In fact, Motoki you can sit with them whenever they are together at the arcade. It will give you a chance to ask Setsuna some questions. Not too probing or she'll get suspicious. Ask about her job and tell me what she tells you. You'll have to sit with them as well Usa so she thinks you've bought their story from Greece, but don't ask anything or again she'll grow wary that you're all now interested in her job. That will help me when I'm at work." Looking over to Mamoru he continued. "Search her records at the hospital with a fine toothed comb. There must be something that isn't consistent somewhere and I'm determined to find out what it is. As we sit here there's something still gnawing at my mind about this woman, and I'm not getting a good feeling about it. Let's just be careful. We'll meet at Motoki's whenever one of us picks up useful information so we can go forward using the new information. You two will pass any information to me and I'll pass it to Usa and we'll meet at 6pm of the day we get the information. It's best so that if she's anywhere near Seiya he won't wonder why you both are calling her a lot all of a sudden."

After agreeing on a plan of action Usagi had wanted to spend a bit more time with Mamoru, so as Saphir left to get her stuff from both her and Seiya's place, Motoki went home to prepare his place for his guest. Sitting cuddled next to him she tried to be brave enough to ask for what she wanted. "I....I want to remember how it felt lying in your arms Mamoru." She didn't look up as she asked, for even though she knew how he felt about her; there was still a part of her that feared his rejection. His refusal to answer only served to increase her fear, but she soon felt him stir against her. Having her sit up from her position against his body, he took her hand and smiled, as he silently led her towards the bedroom. As she climbed in the bed, he climbed in afterwards, pulling her towards him once they had settled. Stroking her shoulder as she lay on his chest, any sniff of doubts about his future were swept away. This was where his future was: her lying in his arms out of a sheer need to be there; him complying with her wishes out of a sheer need to have her there. He closed his eyes, knowing that he had to give her up to Motoki. Even though he had promised to give him an open door policy regarding Usagi, he didn't like the idea of her staying with another man. 'Even though that man is my best friend.'

"You look troubled. What's wrong Mamo – chan?" Not realising her term of endearment, she continued to stare into her lover's face. He had picked up on it though, but decided against pointing it out. He'd let her use it as it was unique to them. However, he sighed as he answered her question. "I don't like the idea of you staying with Motoki. Yes I know he's my best friend but I want to be the only man you live with Usako. I want to be the only man you come home to. I was getting all excited when your brother said you'd be moving in with me only to have it come crashing down because of Setsuna. I'm not upset with him or you. It's just....I don't know." Seeing the torment written on his face, she kissed him in hopes of easing his worries. She had taken note of the nickname, but just like he did, she left it alone. It was her unique name given by him and it made her heart soar. She wasn't happy either but at this moment it was for the best. Putting her all into the kiss she hoped he could feel what she was trying to put over to him. She wanted to be with him; she loved him and only him; staying with Motoki was a matter of convenience due to the circumstances.

As the kiss grew deeper Mamoru rolled them over so that he was now on top of her. She was driving him crazy; had been driving him crazy. Little did he know, he had been doing the same thing to her. Moving from her lips he kissed her jaw, down to her neck and back up. Kissing her forehead he then looked into her eyes. "If we go any further I'm not going to be able to stop myself." As he talked she had continued planting kisses along his jaw. He wanted to take it as a sign that she was willing to go further, but the gentlemanly side of him, which he was cursing now, demanded that he hear a clear answer pass from her lips. Groaning as he tried to ignore the raging hormones, he pulled back a bit, put a small kiss on her lips and asked again. "Are you sure about this Usako? I just need to make sure you want this as much as I do."

Realising that he was trying to be proper made her stop for a bit, but no thinking was necessary. She knew she wanted this; she wanted him. "Yes Mamo – chan." The words had barely passed her lips before Mamoru had started kissing her again. Their hands started to roam as they felt a fire starting to burn within them; a need, which both knew could only be satisfied by the other. His hand trailed up her leg and he felt her tremble with anticipation and desire.

Their heads snapped up however, when they heard a familiar voice and a banging on the door. "Mamoru get your damned hands off my sister and open the damned door!" They sighed but chuckled a bit. Saphir had returned with her things and was ready to take her over to Motoki. Knowing the moment had passed they kissed one last time before going to let him in.

"I can't even leave for a minute without you trying to grope her. Do you know how long I've been banging on this door? Ugh." Saphir wasn't really upset; he was just enjoying his new found role as over protective big brother. "Let's get you over to Motoki's. We'll be in touch Mamoru." Taking her hand he led her out of the building as she looked over her shoulder to get a final glance at Mamoru. He gave a small wave and she smiled at him. Mouthing an "I love you" to him, he returned it, which made her blush.

As she lay in bed, her hormones were still running rampant through her body so she turned on the small television in the room. She flicked to a news channel figuring her disinterest in whatever was being said would lull her to sleep. It wasn't really doing its job however, and for that she was grateful. Had she fallen to sleep she would have never seen the story they were now covering. Screaming for Motoki, she couldn't believe her eyes or her ears.

Upon entering the room he was ready to fight, expecting her screams to be an indication of danger or an insect. Following her outstretched finger to the television, he too was in shock by what he saw.

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**o0o0o0o was that a cliff hanger?? I hope so lol sometimes it doesn't feel that way because I know what's coming next, but I have to keep remembering that you don't...well at least I hope you don't lol next chapter should be out later today, but no promises this time...my wrist still hurts a bit so typing is a big hard. But I'll try :) **

**and YES I had to use the nicknames!! No Usagi/Mamoru fic where they are in love would be complete without it lol...even AU...(of course if they aren't together then fine)...the love scene hope it was too your liking even though they got interrupted :D (does my fic get to keep the K+ rating? lol wasn't explicit and was quite tame)...ja ne!!! hope you enjoyed the chapter!!**


	13. A jackhammer to cut the tension

**Ok minor note: This chapter alone is rated T. It doesn't contain sex but it's suggestive and I didn't want to get in trouble on my first story lol read only if you can read suggestive themes!!**

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They didn't know how much longer they could keep up the facade. It was going two months now and the tension between them was growing. Saphir was working as hard and as fast he could to follow their one and only lead they had gotten from the news that night. And while it was proving fruitful, it was bearing fruit slowly. Setsuna had returned from Greece and had taken to spending almost all of her time with Mamoru, especially the weekends. For his part, he tried to put in as many hours at the hospital as he could during the week. He wasn't getting to see Usagi as often as he had hoped and it was killing him. While a part of him knew he was being irrational, another part of him couldn't help but be jealous of Motoki and it was taking a toll on their relationship as well. He found himself being unnecessarily rude to his best friend, especially when it involved him hearing about how they spent their time together and how enjoyable it was. What made it worst, was that he had to stomach seeing Seiya hug or kiss her whenever he went to the firm under the guise of seeking legal counsel from Saphir. Seiya seemed to do it in his presence with a certain smugness about him, like he was marking territory, letting Mamoru know with pleasure that Usagi was his.

Usagi, having seen his behaviour, had felt sorry for him, but it didn't make the situation any better since they were supposed to be working together. She knew Seiya didn't know about them or their plans so she had wondered why he only seemed affectionate towards her whenever Mamoru came around. 'Maybe he always figured that Mamoru and I had feelings for each other, but now he's won and is trying to rub it in his face.' And as for Motoki, he wasn't particularly upset with Mamoru per se, but his patience was growing thin with how he was being treated. No matter what he did to reassure Mamoru that he wasn't interested in her, he still got treated badly.

It wasn't as bad for her seeing Mamoru and Setsuna together. He was never one who got touchy in public so, while it still hurt to see her cuddle next to him when they were in a booth at the arcade, he would never caress her cheek the way he did when they were alone. What was bothering her was the night they had come so close to finally being with one another kept constantly replaying in her mind. So vivid was the memory that at time she felt him over her, kissing and touching her, and her body was responding as if he were there. Her hormones had almost taken control a few times, where she had to stop herself from forgetting all about this stupid plan and taking Mamoru back to his apartment to have her way with him.

Somewhere along the line she realised that this was just as important to Mamoru as it was to her. While her pretend boyfriend cheating on her wasn't upsetting, she still wanted to know why he was cheating, if he was in fact cheating; her need to find out about Setsuna was due to the fact that her presence had cost her time with Mamoru, and for her that was more upsetting and unnerving than having a pretend boyfriend cheat. On the other hand, Mamoru had put his trust in Setsuna. They were actually in a relationship. And whereas he was naturally a friendly person, it still took a lot out of him to trust someone fully. Knowing that his trust was now misplaced, she wondered if that would have any effect on their future relationship. That was another reason she wanted a future with Mamoru. She wanted to show him that Setsuna had been an outlier; his trust would not be misplaced if he was with her. That thought alone sometimes helped her push down her raging hormones and continue on with the plan.

Sitting in what used to be their booth, Usagi sipped her cranberry juice. 'There's got to be a way to make this situation go a bit better.' Somewhere inside she hoped that Mamoru would walk through the door. Maybe then she'd think of something. As if on queue, the bell chimed signalling the arrival of a new customer. Too deep in thought however, she failed to notice when said person sat across from her.

He couldn't risk sitting next to her. With her his usual behaviour went out the door and he knew he'd kiss her on the spot. "What's got you so entranced?" "Mamo – chan." She replied absently. "Nice to know I'm still on your mind, like you are on mine." He said with a smile. Looking around sharply at the new voice she saw him flashing her a smile. "Mamo...ru!" she exclaimed, not wanting to give up the charade by using her term of endearment for him, less the wrong pair of ears heard. She saw the look of need and desire for her in his eyes and all too soon her hormones started up again. Taking a few deep breaths to calm herself, she finally spoke. "How are you doing?" "A lot better now that I'm seeing you." At that she blushed; she always did whenever he complimented her.

They sat in a comfortable silence after more pleasantries were exchanged until he decided to ask her what was running through his mind. "Come to the park with me." Well it hadn't come out like a question, rather a request. "What would happen if we got caught together." She knew they were supposed to be friends but to keep up the charade they weren't supposed to be seen alone. "Sorry. I haven't spent any time alone with you in what seems like forever and I just thought....never mind." Seeing the hurt in his eyes, she couldn't deny his request. She too had wanted to spend time alone with him but she feared being caught. "Ok we can spend some time alone, but it can't be at the park. How about we go over to Motoki's and spend some time in my room?" At her suggestion he seemed to perk up. "I'm not too sure though...I've been treating him pretty sourly recently and he's probably pissed." Realising that his current behaviour towards his supposed best friend might be costing him some precious time with his Usako, he sighed.

Motoki slid in the booth next to Usagi. "Why do you two look so depressed." Before Mamoru could say a word, she had already started telling him what they wanted to do. "We need some time alone Motoki, especially with all that has been going on. So we were wondering if we could use your place right now as a get - away of sorts." Looking over to Mamoru he saw an expression on his face, which, from their years of knowing each other, he knew was his way of trying to say sorry. He kind of understood Mamoru's anger and frustration towards the situation and towards him so he gave him an easy smile, which Mamoru knew to interpret as forgiveness for being a jackass. "Sure go on." He said as he moved so Usagi could get out. Lunging at him she hugged him tightly, whispering her thanks before she let go. Giving him an easy smile in return, Mamoru nodded his thanks and appreciation for forgiving him, knowing they were alright.

It was only after they had left that he thought about one slight problem. 'What will I do if Setsuna comes asking for him?' He'd have to think of that. His two friends deserved to be happy together, and he would do what it takes to ensure that they were.

Arriving at Motoki's house, the lovers quickly entered as Usagi led the way to her room. She climbed into her bed waiting for Mamoru to do the same so they could cuddle. Instead of lying next to her, he climbed on top of her; pressing a kiss to her forehead as soon as they got comfortable. "I've missed you Usako." Without waiting for her to say anything he started to kiss her passionately. As his love for her had grown, so had his appreciation for the things she wore. Clad in her usual knee length black skirt with a pink dress shirt this time around, he had found her highly arousing and had to keep himself under control as he drove to Motoki's, refusing the urge to pull over and let his hormones take control.

Now that they were alone however, he could do as he wished. He knew he had her permission and this time he wasn't going to stop. Moving from her lips he gently kissed his way down her throat, kissing a pathway down her stomach as he opened up her buttons. Sitting her up, he helped her discard her top, throwing it onto the floor.

With one final kiss they gave into their natural instinct and as they lay satiated afterwards, they remained unaware of a presence outside of the house. A presence that had followed them straight from the arcade.

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**that seems like the appropriate place to stop....don't you think so?? :) And as I had said, no sex, it was just highly suggestive...I'll keep the warning at the top so everyone knows beforehand what they can expect....that's it for today :) the story will continue soon!!!! who is this person outside?? and what exactly had they seen on the news?? stay tuned!! **


	14. Penny for your thoughts

**NB: I used the ****** here to signify an abrupt change in scene. It's a short cut scene that adds a bit of drama and mystery to the story! **

**Onward with the story!!!**

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The knocking on the front door pulled the couple from their state of bliss, both wondering who it could possibly be. Both knew that at this time all of Motoki's friends would know he was at work and would therefore check the arcade for him; so who could possibly be coming here to Motoki? And then the same thought occurred to them at the same time: "We were followed." They said at the same time. Only two people would have followed them here in silence and fear coursed through them at the thought of being caught.

"Wait here Usako. I'll go see if we have any uninvited guests. If it is indeed who we think it is then we'll just say we came here ahead of Motoki since we were going to hang out later tonight, understand?" "Ok. But be careful, please."

Having put on his clothes, Mamoru moved quietly towards the window, hoping to catch a glimpse of their guest before being seen or heard. Moving the curtain ever so slightly he peered out, noticing a head full of jet black hair, slicked back in neat perfection. A dark business suit adorned the obviously fit figure of the individual, fitted enough to show off said figure. A small diamond stud glinted under the late evening glare. Striking blue eyes were glaring at the door, as if hoping by mere thought it would crash and burn allowing his entrance. He had the look of a predator that had now put his prey into a corner from which there was no escape. Running a hand through his own black locks, Mamoru sighed, opened the door and prepared for the onslaught.

Entering the house, the guest took no time to find a comfortable seat. "Next time at LEAST don't answer the door reeking of my sister." Saphir said as he looked at Mamoru, with a roll of his eyes. "And tell her it's safe to come out of hiding." Visibly upset he decided to calm down a bit before saying what he had to. "Mamoru you knew you weren't supposed to come here alone with her. She was either supposed to come with me or with Motoki. And the fact that you two were so caught up with each other made you totally oblivious to the fact that I was following you from the time you exited the arcade. What if it had been Seiya or Setsuna who had seen and followed you?" Making sure he got his point across he looked at them both to see their reactions. Satisfied by their bowed heads he continued softer. "Anyway, I was going to meet Motoki and tell him I've been able to get some information from the lead you gave to me. But when I saw you leaving together I decided to follow you so that I could avert danger should OTHER people have seen and chosen to follow you. I called Motoki and told him we'd be waiting on him before we discussed anything so Mamoru could you do me a favour and borrow some of his cologne. I may approve of your relationship with her but I don't appreciate smelling her all over you."

******

He was about to lock the doors to the arcade when he felt someone approaching him. In the glass doors he saw the reflection of the one person he had wanted to avoid since Mamoru left: Setsuna.

"Hey Motoki. I've been trying to reach Mamoru but his phone seems to be off. Any idea where he is?" Something about her question made him wary, so he kept his guard up. "Yea I do actually. Usa wanted to go watch that new horror so she's dragging me and Mamoru along so she doesn't get scared. 'Double the protection' she said. They went ahead of me to buy the tickets so I can just join them when I'm ready." Not knowing when he had learned to lie so slickly, he just went with the flow. "I'll tell him to call you though. I'm sure he wants to hear you. He was telling Usa about you today." With a wink at her, she seemed pleased with what he told her, especially the last part. He left her standing there as he went off to his car.

On his way home the uneasy feeling would not leave him. There was something pulling at him that had made him wary of what Setsuna asked him. Going over it again he noted one discrepancy. "Mamoru works at the hospital; he never keeps his phone off. Even if she got his voicemail the ringing would have told her it was on and he just hadn't answered." Thinking out loud his words struck him like a tonne of bricks. "She knows something!"

"Damn it!" Hopefully she had believed his lie. If she was already suspicious of us then his lie would have just confirmed what she wanted to know. Putting his foot through the floor, he sped off in the direction of his home, knowing he had to alert the others quickly.

******

Moments later a door was flung open. "What the hell has got your panties in a bunch? You aren't supposed to be seen here you know that." Seiya was angry. She was breaking all their rules and he couldn't risk anything happening now that he finally had Usagi all to himself.

"They know something. I don't know what they know but they know something." She wore a worried expression on her face as she recounted her run – in with Motoki. Seiya started laughing at her. "So THAT'S what convinced you that they know something? You saw her with a look on her face, Mamoru joined her, then Motoki, and all of a sudden she was happy and ran off with Mamoru. Doesn't that support what Motoki told you? They've always done these things together, and honestly, if anything I'm glad that Motoki is going since it means Mamoru will keep his hands to himself. You worry too much Sets. How about we go out and have a drink in celebration. You've got your hands on Mamoru's trust fund thanks to me, and I've gotten Usagi thanks to you. Now don't screw this up with your foolish feminine intuition." Finishing, he gave her a glare which dared her to go against what he said.

After she walked out of the office defeated, he took a look around. He had his parent's firm, he had money, he had his best friend, and now...now he had Usagi. He had loved her since they were growing up as she was first developing. She wasn't physically perfect like Setsuna, but she was beautiful. She may not have liked her imperfections, but she dressed to hide them, however few there were and flaunt her perfections. That confidence had made him love her more than he thought he did.

Their families being friends, it was always a given that if she had chosen to continue in the tradition and become a lawyer that there would be a space reserved for her. He understood her indecision at this point so he had spoken to her brother and offered her a place here as an assistant to the head lawyers. It gave her the opportunity to work along side them in big cases, and she got invaluable experience in researching and preparing cases for court. Being interested in corporate law, he had gladly took her under his wings so he could be her mentor, and hopefully one day her lover. What made it better was that there was no other man in her life so he didn't have competition for her affections; he could therefore go as slowly as he wanted, instead of rushing into something that they both weren't ready for. Many times they had gone out as just friends, especially when she came to him fuming about whatever new insults Mamoru had decided to throw her way. Knowing that her brother was sometimes too busy to entertain her, it made his heart soar that she confided in him; he was second to her brother and on the face of it, it may not sound like a good thing, but any man knew that when a woman chose you as second after her family, you were as good as in. But that all changed when she came to work one morning with a big smile plastered on her face. He just had to know what it was that could cause her to be so happy, considering she wasn't a morning person. When he found out however, he wished he hadn't asked, for she only said one word, one name, and it shook him to the core. Mamoru.

Thinking back on that day made his blood boil. Apparently they had made up when she actually cried because of one of his insults. Seeing the effects his words were having on her, he had decided to speak to her nicely the following day. He hadn't verbally apologised to her, but she figured it was his way of saying sorry without actually having to say it. She accepted it. Afterwards they had become inseparable and it made him now third after Saphir. Mamoru had come along and taken his place. Somewhere along the line her friendly love had turned into love for a lover. Going by Usagi he figured Mamoru was feeling the same way about her, and he had to put a stop to that. He didn't know much about Mamoru, but he knew from a casual conversation with a past "acquaintance" that she was his current girlfriend, so he decided to call her up knowing he was owed a favour. He had given her money to disappear or else all his hard work would have gone down the drain, but now she was needed ASAP.

Calling her back had been one of his best ideas ever. It drove Usagi right into his open and waiting arms. She didn't cry over Mamoru, but he knew it's why she was there. He didn't care though; that's what he wanted, and the more she saw Setsuna with Mamoru, the more she came to him. Seizing the opportunity, he suggested that they start a relationship, hoping she'd accept. Setsuna had kept him informed of whenever she was going to crash any party between her and Mamoru so it left him a chance to text her so she could come into his arms. He had therefore known the day when he professed his feelings for her, that Setsuna was with Mamoru and he purposely carried her to the Crown Arcade to show Mamoru his prized possession. Pretending not to have seen them in the booth, he let his eyes stray elsewhere, but he knew she had seen them. The final nail in the coffin was hammered in when her best friend Motoki asked who he was and she announced without pause that he was her boyfriend. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Mamoru falter a bit upon hearing the news, so he threw his arm around Usagi as she smiled up at him. He had won.

They had been growing apart and she had been drawing closer to him. The plan couldn't have gone any better. The idiot of a woman however, had not picked up on the feelings her boyfriend had for his Usagi and as usual decided to take another trip, using her "auditor" excuse. So while he was in Greece on his vacation, he had been quite shocked and upset that he bumped into her there. He had left Usagi home since she wasn't feeling well, having had a bit of the flu. It didn't matter though; he figured that with Setsuna still there she'd keep the two of them apart. Imagine his surprise when, being out to enjoy dinner by himself as a mini celebration of his victory, he ran into her. It was even more surprising when he saw a seething Mamoru walk up to his table with Usagi in tow. He knew how it looked but it was truly a coincidence they were together, and while he hadn't done anything wrong apart from lying about who she was, he felt a tad bit guilty knowing that Mamoru had brought Usagi to Greece for him. That feeling didn't last too long however, once he realised that Mamoru wasn't buying the story and neither was Usagi. She had turned down his offer to stay at the house to go stay at the hotel with Mamoru. That pissed him off, and even though she arrived the next day, her disbelief led her to stay in a separate room from his. Knowing it was Mamoru's doing he vowed to not let him get in between their relationship. For the entire month they were there he tried to woo her and it was working.

Now back at home, they seemed to be getting closer. She was slowly starting to come around to him and cutting out Mamoru. He didn't mind that she was staying with her brother. Saphir had confided in him that he and his wife were really having a disagreement so that's why she decided to spend some time with her parents. She had taken their daughter as well and he therefore needed his sister as a source of comfort. Understanding this, he wasn't surprised to see him bury himself in his work in an attempt to forget the problems at home.

The situation got even better when Usagi told him, after his suspicions, that Mamoru was trying to solve a case of harassment accusations by a co – worker with as little noise as possible, which was why he was always here to see Saphir so frequently. Using it to his advantage, he became far more affectionate towards Usagi whenever Mamoru was around; her response to his advances only served to boost his ego.

So here he was now. Usagi was all his, and he couldn't be happier. Setsuna had done her job so he'd have to thank her. Slowly Mamoru was fading out of Usagi's life and that's how he wanted it to stay. That's why he planned to propose to her tonight. Since she had gone to the movies with Motoki and Mamoru he'd have to do it tomorrow night instead. And even though one would think he'd be upset that she was with Mamoru, Motoki's presence served as a comfort knowing that he wouldn't try anything in public with someone else around. No matter, it would all be over once they were married. He'd move to Greece like he had been planning. Using his contacts there he'd have a job in a prestigious law firm and Usagi would be his assistant as usual. Mamoru would be out of their lives for good.

A satisfied smirk was on his face as he looked at the ring he had bought for her. It was a simple ring, at least for his tastes: platinum band with a 3 karat diamond set in the centre. So lost was he in his thoughts and excitement, that he hadn't realised that there was another person in the room. "We've got to talk Kou."

It was Saphir, and he looked pissed.

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**:) another chapter!!! I used this to show Seiya's POV about everything, which helped explain some of the earlier happenings in the story...but what has got Saphir so upset with Seiya??? and why haven't I revealed what they saw on TV??? who exactly is Setsuna?? hehehehehe it's all going to be revealed soon...hope you enjoyed reading!!! more to come soon since the wrist is better!! :) ja ne**


	15. All he needs now is a Christmas tree

**we're finally winding down!!! :) here is one of the final chapters :) enjoy!**

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"What is this Kou?" he said, pointing at the ring. "It's an engagement ring, what the hell does it look like?" replied Seiya with equal vigour.

"You're not marrying her." Eyes flashing, he had to calm himself before he revealed his knowledge of their, Setsuna and Seiya's, true intentions. He was supposed to be friendly; he was supposed to lull him into a false sense of security before bringing their world crashing down around them. Taking a deep breath he started again. "Sorry man, you know how much she means to me. I saw the ring and I freaked." Moving over to a chair in front of the desk he sat in front of Seiya, hands running through his dark mane. "That's my little sister; always has been and always will be. Do you know how hard it will be to give her up?"

"It's alright. I know what you mean. Well not exactly but whatever. I was quite happy when my older brother left home." He said with a laugh. "How about we have a drink." Turning around he went to a mini fridge and pulled out sparkling champagne. "Non – alcoholic of course. Can't drunken the clients before I get their money."

Laughing along in pretend agreement, Saphir noted with complete disdain that his best friend, make that former best friend, had turned into a money hungry hound. Coming from a life of wealth and privilege he had always gotten whatever his heart desired, even if he discarded it seconds later as his eyes caught something better. Scolding himself slightly again for being too caught up in his work to see what his friend had become, he vowed silently to never let him get his hands on Usagi. More and more he came to the conclusion that Seiya probably didn't really love his sister; she was what his heart desired at the moment and just like in most cases he dealt with, he did anything to win. What that meant was that once he found something better than Usagi, he'd drop her like a hot potato without a second glance. His blood was boiling with anger at both himself and Seiya. Usagi would have never been in this mess if he had been there for her as an older brother, for he would have picked up these signs from Seiya before and would have warned her. His anger at Seiya was for treating his sister like a possession to be won. In the process he was hurting her and that was not going to fly with him. He'd have to concentrate on this later however. The plan had to continue so his sister could get out unscathed, as well as Mamoru and he'd make damned sure of that.

Downing the last set of their drinks, the pair carried on casual conversation until Saphir made a move to leave. He didn't want to give away any hint that he knew what was going on between him and Setsuna but he couldn't help his next set of words from passing his lips. "I know you'll treat her well. She told me she was worried about you cheating when she but up on you in Greece but I've talked to her and let her know you wouldn't do ANYTHING to hurt her and she's been coming around. She knows now that you're my best friend and that if you hurt her, you hurt me. And hurting me means I'll make sure you're the one holding the roses and not her…on your chest."

With a brilliant smile he placed his hand on Seiya's shoulder and held out his other arm for a handshake. "Welcome to the family Kou." Smiling broadly as well, Seiya interpreted his words as a joke between friends, underestimating the seriousness of the final threat. Accepting the hand shake only one thought passed through his mind: 'I finally got her.'

******

The day had started out fine. Better than fine, it was fantastic. He had woken up with Usako in his arms, and due to the fact that he had awoken so early, he had the chance to enjoy the feeling of her lying snuggled into his side as he caressed her shoulder gently. So happy was he that even the news of her having to go to work with Seiya didn't upset him.

Now on his way back to the apartment to get ready for work, he couldn't help but smile. They were still young, him being 22 with her at 21, but he wanted to make what they had permanent. He had never thought of marriage until now, but instead of being together officially and planning their future, they had to entertain drama from two persons who they now knew were not interested in them in the least. But that issue would be sorted out later today and he couldn't be happier. Finally he would be able to walk down the street with her and he'd cherish the feeling of being the envied one instead of doing the envying. He'd enjoy the rush that came over him when he wanted to punch in a guy's face for looking at his Usako too openly. He was like a kid on Christmas, and how Christmas couldn't have come any sooner.

Work flew by in a hurry, mostly because he did everything that had been asked of him so nothing could hold him back at work. All patients had been seen, admitted or checked out, or sadly "checked out". Rushing off towards the parking lot, nothing could have ruined this moment.

That was until he saw her walking towards him in what she figured was a seductive manner.

"You didn't spend last night in your apartment." He really didn't want to do this now but he entertained her anyway. "Yea we dropped off Usa....gi and then we hung out as guys at Motoki's. I ended up crashing there."

Running a hand across his chest she pouted slightly. "Well that doesn't leave any room for me. Why don't we spend the night together and really get to know one another." The look in her eyes left no room to doubt what she was trying to hint at. He shuddered from the disgust he felt coursing through his body, but she interpreted it another way.

Thinking she had won over his affections, or rather his pants, she slid in the passenger seat of the car. Unaware of his intentions however, she allowed herself to gloat in her misguided piety.

******

She seemed to be sitting there for hours. Saphir had called Seiya pretending to be distraught and needing his sister. He had agreed, due to his understanding of the situation at home.

So here she sat. Listening to these men talk was intriguing and boring at the same time. All this information definitely came as a shock to her and she knew Mamoru would probably faint when he found out. When she first entered her brother's office and saw the men she thought she had but in on a meeting and was about to excuse herself until Saphir told her to stay, explaining exactly who the men were. Upon the realisation of who they were and what it meant she smiled inwardly. 'That's why he earns the big dollars.' Her brother was truly a remarkable person and a lawyer. She knew he could have simply given Seiya a piece of his mind and made him stay away from her. But knowing how important the situation was to her AND Mamoru he had gone over everything with a fine toothed comb. He had searched high and low for anything to help this predicament. The dedication to this showed her exactly why he always had clients: they knew he'd earn every dollar they threw his way.

A soft knock came from the door as Mamoru sounded his voice to let Saphir know it was him. Motioning that she would get it, she walked over to the door and opened it, allowing Mamoru entrance. Closing it quickly he embraced her and placed a quick kiss on her lips, knowing her brother would be all over him like a rash had it lasted any longer. As they parted he saw two men sitting in front of Saphir; two men who were vaguely familiar, yet still unfamiliar.

Suddenly he got nervous and felt his palms get sweaty, despite the cool air conditioning filtering through the office. It was a nervous excitement however, and he slowly began counting down until the exact moment Usako could be officially his.

"Hey Chiba." Saphir said as he got up to greet him.

"She's upstairs in the lounge." Came his only reply.

"A bit excited aren't you Mamoru." Said Saphir with a laugh. "We'll get to them soon enough, but first you have to meet these two people. They are both important to what we will do this evening. Mamoru this is…."

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**o0o0o0o0o DRAMA! LOL ok I'll admit I'm getting wayyyy to excited when I try to write a good cliff hanger LOL we're coming down to the revelation....but who are these two men??? and why are they so important??? only time will tell *pretend I said that like some sort of ancient greek god or something lol* stay tuned for the next chapter!!! tell me if you like!!**


	16. Always make sure you close the door

**Thank you EvaC for ALLLL your help!!! seriously!!! and thank you to my reviewers...you are few but I cherish them all the same!! and even if you have read and haven't reviewed I thank you for reading the story :) now onwards to chapter 16!!! enjoy!!**

**quick note: BOLD writing here indicates a flashback as was the case in a previous chapter. **

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**A pair of long, slender legs made their way into the Crown Arcade. The woman they were attached to looked around, taking in every note of her surroundings. She was on a mission and she intended to carry it out. Still looking around her eyes fell on her target. There he was sitting at the counter, leaning over a book thoroughly engrossed in what the author had to say, sipping away at coffee. The pictures she had seen of him had done him justice. While he was gorgeous she had seen better, particularly body wise. She wasn't going to complain however; if she had needed everyone of her missions to be perfect she would have been out of a job. And whereas she technically was, this particular person had captivated her for one specific reason, which increased her determination to carry out this task even though it was off the record. This one she was doing for herself. Making her way over to her target, she made up in her mind on the short trip there which routine she would use to suck him in. **

**Sitting down on the stool with a little less grace than usual she accidentally bumped him. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry. I'm just so tired and frustrated and I wasn't paying attention. Sorry." Her apologies became a rant, so he chuckled and merely replied, "It's ok no harm done. It will take a lot more than a little bump to break me. See?" As if trying to reassure her he gave himself a few playful slaps on the arms. She was far less interested in hearing his reassurances however for she was already smiling to herself and thinking: 'Gotcha.'**

"**I'm Setsuna by the way. Meioh Setsuna." Flashing him a smile, she held out her hand gesturing for a handshake. "I'm Chiba Mamoru. Pleased to meet you." He said as he returned her smile and handshake. **

**The pair continued casual conversation until she announced she had to leave. Returning from her job mere hours ago, she explained that she needed rest. Exchanging contact information they resolved to meet again here in a few days, and would call each other to confirm. **

"**Looks like you're smitten already Chiba. Hard to believe that was just the first time you met." The voice of his best friend Furuhata Motoki brought him out of his trance. "Maybe I am. She seems like a great person. We have a lot of things in common, but she has one draw back." Head tilted to a side like a dog Motoki wanted to know more about the mystery woman. "What's that Mamoru?" Sighing, he told Motoki about her job. She was an auditor with a prestigious firm that audited some of the biggest multi – national corporations as well as some lesser international companies. It meant she was always overseas and she came home for vacation, instead of it being the other way around. **

"**I know I may be getting way ahead of myself here Motoki, but there's something about her that I like. If we were to get into any sort of relationship I don't know how I'd handle having my girlfriend overseas all the time." Shaking his head he continued, "But as I said, I'm probably getting ahead of myself here since I don't even know if she likes me."**

"**Well I guess you'll find out when you meet her again. But right now you have finals to study for so get to it." Mamoru could only smile at his best friend. He was right though; if he wanted to get out of University he'd have to put in the miles to pass these exams. Sometimes he cursed the day he chose to study medicine. 'You're soon done Mamoru. You're soon done.'**

**After their initial meeting the two continued to meet regularly at Mamoru's apartment. Setsuna had said she would rather get to know him in the privacy of his home than with eyes peering all around them. "It leads to dishonesty, knowing you have to keep up your public image." Agreeing with her Mamoru allowed their meetings to be held at his apartment, never once questioning why her apartment couldn't be used. He revealed his medical dreams, while she revealed that she had been estranged from her family from the time she was around 14. It meant she had spent the last 10 years on her own, working odd jobs while saving and attending university in order to become a successful auditor. **

**It was a few months since they had met each other. Mamoru had finished University and was now an intern at the local hospital. Setsuna had stayed around trying to find out as much as possible about him as she could. Never one to like staying in the same place too long, she soon told Mamoru that her job required her to return. **

**He understood, but he missed her from the moment she was gone. Sitting alone at the counter in the arcade felt so unfamiliar now since he had spent a whole lot of time away. He had hardly contacted Motoki and knew his best friend was upset at the sudden abandonment over a woman. He knew he liked Setsuna but it was no reason to ignore his best friend. Being angry at himself he saw the perfect opportunity to get rid of some of it by the now unusual method of trading barbs with none other than Tsukino Usagi.**

**She had come into the arcade and quietly sat next to him. He was one year older than she was, and while he was finished with university and had chosen a career at 21, she hadn't and didn't seem like she was any closer to it. Ignoring the fact that she hadn't said a word to him, he struck up the provoking conversation, intending to get a rise out of her that would hopefully help releasing some of the anger he felt. **

**The conversation, if it could be called that, had been going normal for them until he marched himself into the territory of her lack of a degree and career choice. Not knowing much about her besides what he heard her tell Motoki, he never knew of her indecision about a career. **

"**Don't tell me you can't get into a university Odango. Even average students get into universities and know what they want to do with their lives. What's wrong with you?" Either he had not seen the clear hurt flash across her face or her chose to ignore it, but he continued on. "Maybe you should stop cashing after guys that don't want you," hinting towards Motoki, "and put some of that dumb blonde energy to use."**

**Silently she got up with tears streaming down her face. With one backslap across his face she turned and walked towards a booth in the back of the arcade. Still holding his offended cheek, Mamoru turned around to see his best friend glaring daggers at him. If he was Ceasar then surely the daggers in Motoki's eyes made him Brutus and this was the Ides of March. No one needed to tell him what Motoki was upset at; he had known. He had gone too far. Bowing his head he sighed, then looked back up towards Motoki who rolled his eyes and turned away. 'Now he's doubly upset at you Mamoru; nice going." Getting up to leave his eyes spotted Usagi in the back booth with a forlorn look on her face. Sighing he knew he had to apologise, but he waited until the next day. 'Maybe she would have cooled off by then.'**

**Sure enough he apologised in his own way the next day to both her and Motoki. Accepting it the three moved on from that day as friends. While talking to Usagi a few months later the topic of her dreams came up. As she explained to him her indecision about choosing a career as a lawyer, Mamoru felt guilt well up inside. Not long ago he had stung her with his crass words, and now he understood why. She was feeling pressure from both her family and herself. She didn't want to disappoint her family since they were all lawyers, and whereas she loved the law as well, she didn't know if it's what she wanted as career. He didn't dwell on the guilt, and instead chose to encourage her in whatever decision she made. Now he realised that being a year younger than him, she had an advantage of at least waiting to make sure what she decided to do was what she wanted to do and would be happy with. A feeling had made its way through; a feeling like he wanted to be the one who made her happy, to help see her through her indecision and support her final career choice. Thinking it was simply a spur of the moment backlash from feeling guilty, he quickly extinguished the thought. **

******

Knocking on his door lightly she waited until she got permission to enter. Opening the door slowly she peered inside to see Seiya admiring an engagement ring.

"Today will mark the first step towards her becoming permanently mine. Mamoru will be crushed and I'll gladly send a post card when we get to Greece." Seiya announced with glee. Getting up from his chair he walked over to her, continuing his speech. "I have both you and Mamoru to thank for driving her towards me. Everything was going fine, but I thought what happened in Greece would have put a stop to my plans; and it almost did. Luckily for me, Mamoru dearest ran off the next morning and left her to me. She started to come around. I guess I should also thank her brother and his wife. Since they started having problems and she left with their daughter, he needed Usa to stay with him. He's been talking me back into her good graces and now she's completely forgotten her feelings for that doctor boy. It couldn't have worked out any more perfectly than it has."

Folding her arms across her chest she looked at Seiya and laughed. "You know you're no better than me. You claimed to be in this for love but now this has turned into some sick competition between you and Mamoru for Usagi. Just admit you don't love her and if Mamoru hadn't shown interest in your precious rabbit that right now you wouldn't have an engagement ring ready to commit your life to one woman. A woman who hasn't even slept with you, you want me to believe you're genuinely in love with. Not you, whose interest in women always seemed to wane once she didn't put out." Smirking as she finished she felt a slap burn her right cheek.

"I don't need your moral support so save it. I brought you here to do one job so don't question me. But to rebut your statement, I do love Usa. I've loved her for a long time now, and while it's true that she hasn't had sex with me yet, I plan to make the most of it when we get married. Who knows, maybe she was waiting on me to make a step towards a permanent commitment before she did anything, unlike other women I know. And since I know Mamoru hasn't gotten any from her either it's even better. Maybe on that post card I'll send a picture from the wedding night. Or maybe I'll write him a personal letter letting him know what he could never have. Concerning how fast I'm moving with this since Mamoru came into the picture, yes I'll admit it. Once she made up with him I was livid. He took my place behind Saphir and I was going to get it back. If it meant I had to out manoeuvre him to win her then so be it. He doesn't deserve her anyway, and wouldn't know the first thing about pleasing a woman."

"He pleases me very well." Setsuna chimed in, but a harsh laugh came from Seiya that shut her up. "You don't count as a woman. You're a whore. It's very easy to please your kind. And don't try to fool me since I know Mamoru hasn't put any of his parts around you; probably for good measure."

"For the record, you did a good job. Once Usa and I have left this place for good, you can do whatever you want. This doesn't make us even however. My neck is still on the chopping block if someone ever figures out what happened so you're eternally indebted to me."

"How right he is Setsuna. It would be dangerous for him if someone ever figured out what he did in trying to cover up your deeds." Both heads looked around to see Saphir standing in the door way, but he wasn't alone.

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**ahhhhhh are we finally getting the revelation??? we're down to the final few chapters now so stay tuned for the finale!!!! :) hope you enjoyed reading it!!**


	17. London bridge is falling down

Giving a mocking applause, Saphir entered the room with 5 persons following behind. As the last two entered shock and fear registered on the faces of both Setsuna and Seiya. "Bravo you two. I must say you did put on a spectacular show. You managed to fool almost everyone, but your own cockiness was your downfall. You figured once you two shut up there was no way anyone could find out; and you paid off anyone who needed to be bought once they got involved. Judging by the looks on your faces however I can tell you forgot about certain people you had come into contact with." Finishing with a smirk of satisfaction, he watched them try to find words to explain.

Seiya, the lawyer that he was, gathered his wits and decided to respond to the accusations. "I have no idea what you're talking about. Can you prove whatever it is you are trying to accuse me of? You may be my best friend but I won't hesitate to sue you for defamation of my character with these false allegations."

The others stayed silent near the door while Saphir did all the talking, as they had been instructed. They weren't supposed to say anything even if personally addressed. "You're right Kou. I have no proof. What I do have is live testimony from two people involved and the other pieces will no longer just like coincidental evidence. But before they say anything let me spell out to you what you both did, and why they are the glue to this puzzle."

******

**Sitting in his office, she would have cried if she knew how to. But she had been hardened and only used crocodile tears as a means of getting whatever she wanted. All of her "colleagues" had been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of getting parole, but she had escaped because she had used her guile on him. Her charm seemed to be wearing off now and the tables had turned. **

**It first started with a lie. When they were supposed to appear in court for sentencing she had hatched a scheme with her colleagues that would get her out of prison, with a promise to return to get them. He had been in on the plan and feigned shock when he found out about the escape. Knowing he would have found her in his office, he went there and made her aware of his own plan. He would use some of his contacts to help her get out of the country while another set of contacts helped erase her files from the criminal system. This favour however came with a price, and she was made aware of what was expected of her. She was to stay out of sight in other countries once they had extradition treaties, but was free to roam in countries that didn't. He would set up a new bank account for her under her new name, Meioh Setsuna, an auditor for Price Waterhouse Coopers. He had used some more of his strings there to give her an employee file which would corroborate their story should any banks etc need information.**

**Staying in his office for a few days, he had made his space out of bounds to everyone. He claimed a client was there, and given their high profile, they could not be seen. Now, wearing a head scarf, jacket and shades, she made her way to the airport and out of the country. He had come in and told her where he was sending her and she was not to return until he said it was safe to.**

******

"You probably found an old case file while overseas and decided to take it up out of sheer interest in him. After all, you could never help yourself once you found a new person to suck dry." Looking directly at her he continued, "Am I right Meioh Setsuna? Or should I call you by your real name Hino Rei?"

Trying not to let her stone cold expression falter she steeled her nerve and looked him in the eye. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Really? You don't remember the face of the man who tried your case? That's a shame really, but I guess it's in your nature to forget faces since once you get what you want. Isn't that right black widow? You led a gang of women who you recruited to be just like you. You walked around trying to spot targets who had money you could get your hands on. Unlike most women like you, you didn't need them to be old just rich and single. And again, unlike most women like you, you didn't kill them off either. No, because too many deaths surrounding you would have made people suspicious and no other men would want you. What you did was you sucked them dry. You got a promise to marry, and with that promise most of them usually gave you access to their bank accounts. With that access you sent all their money to your own account using what you thought were untraceable means then ran off without a word. But you made a mistake once. It was truly an accident how your last fiancé died, but when that happened a whole lot a digging around was done to prove your innocence. It however proved to be your undoing as all your secrets came out. Once his nearly empty bank account was brought to light, your bank account was checked. Detectives could hardly believe the sheer millions you had in there and knew it couldn't have been all yours since you had no known job, no known trust fund etc. With a bit of expert digging around they uncovered all of what you tried to hide. 20 men in 3 years was quite an achievement. Double relationships were easy since you fooled them all into thinking you were their one and only."

The four behind Saphir could hardly believe their ears as he talked. He hadn't told them anything beforehand so they were all shocked by this information. Particularly Mamoru who, even after meeting the two men in Saphir's office, still didn't understand their relevance to what was going on. They listened on as he continued.

"When I finally figured out who you were I couldn't understand why you'd come back after you had escaped. Especially since your accomplice was unknown until now. But as I dug, and my private detectives looked, I found out exactly why you came back. You had unfinished business. Your next target was Mamoru who up to this point doesn't even know why. It surprised you when you realised he didn't live in luxury and was living the average life, so you had to take it slow with him. You couldn't force him to find out what you knew already or else he'd get suspicious. And you couldn't pretend to have accidently come across the information either.

For Mamoru's sake I'll explain further. When your members did the scouting there was an expert among them that was able to do background checks. Finding out about Mamoru was a challenge however, since the only information she could get was the name of his parents. But you loved a challenge and went digging deeper. His mother married into wealth but never accepted her role as trophy wife wholeheartedly; she still wanted to be a normal woman with a normal job. Her new status required that she be seen in public with only people of the same social and economical standing and it pissed her off. She began sneaking out and on one of her trips she met a man. Long story short, she got pregnant and had Mamoru, but for the sake of the family name the pregnancy was kept quiet and the baby given up. His mother wasn't content to just give up her son and so she set up a secret trust fund which no one knew about except his brothers whom she had told on her dying bed. Following the traces you found out who the two brothers were and but up on these two men, Chiba Nephrite and Chiba Kunzite. You also managed to fool them into thinking you were a banking agent who needed information about the account.

With the information in hand, you came back for one last job: getting Mamoru's trust fund. Unfortunately, you forgot to cover the tracks you took when you went to them so my detectives easily uncovered this. Am I missing anything Hino?"

Everyone was in shock. Seiya and Rei were in shock because their plan had been uncovered, while Mamoru, Motoki and Usagi were in shock to find out exactly who she was and also Mamoru's true parentage and his newly acquired wealth.

"Well did I miss anything? I think I covered all bases. I must say though, I'm quite disappointed in you Seiya. We grew up together hearing our fathers talk about what it meant to be a respectful lawyer who also followed the law. What you did is unacceptable and you can be sure I've already reported it and sent all the information to the necessary persons. That's got me more upset than you using Hino, a known criminal, to keep Mamoru and Usa apart. In fact I take that back. You brought a well known criminal into my sister's life and I'll never forgive you for it. Consider yourself lucky I don't like the idea of vigilante justice."

Not wanting to leave without inflicting some sort of damage Rei walked over to Mamoru and held his face in her hands. "At least she'll never be able to please you like I did." She said with a smirk and a wink. Still feeling cocky she was pleased when he smiled back, but his words pushed her back like if they had physical force behind them. "Don't flatter yourself hon. She knows we never did anything; and on the contrary she felt way better than anything you could hope to put out." He had whispered the last part in her ear so as to save Usagi from any sort of embarrassment.

For his part Seiya couldn't believe that everything was now over. He had put so much work into getting Usagi that a numbness came over him as Saphir was exposing everything. He had been played by them all, and his best friend was here to take his dream away. There wouldn't be tears however, for he knew he had started the game; he just didn't like the winner. One question still remained unanswered for him however, and he had to ask. "When did you find out?"

"On TV one night, there was a news special." Usagi started. It killed him that she was the one to answer him, knowing that she in on it all along, but he continued to listen. "We all figured there was something wrong with Setsuna, sorry Rei, and I was staying with Motoki since Saphir didn't trust you anymore. The original idea was to stay with Mamoru but Rei spent the weekends sometimes and it would have been suspicious for me to be there whenever she came by. The first night I spent at Motoki's I couldn't sleep so I turned on the TV hoping the late night news would send me to sleep; what came on however was a special on the case involving Rei. One of the members of her clique had escaped from prison so the police were searching for her, figuring it must have been the same accomplice who helped Rei escape. It wasn't interesting since I had only heard of the case in passing, but then they showed Rei's picture. Instantly I screamed for Motoki and he saw it too. We were shocked but he managed to call Saphir and let him know. Saphir worked quickly and diligently for the next couple months trying to trace all the steps to make sure you were both the same person, even though the odds that you are someone completely different were slim to none; we couldn't take the chance. Every record, every database, you name it, he searched it. Mamoru found a hospital record that had been overlooked by one of your people and it confirmed what we had already assumed. Saphir had suspected something right from the time I told him what happened in Greece. He knew there was no Meioh Setsuna who worked in the firm as an auditor. But then he remembered that you had made a mistake once; a mistake he had ignored." As she talked there was no emotion in her voice. There was simply a calm assurance that everything was now over.

He was surprised as he didn't know what mistake she was referring to. Then it hit him and he groaned loudly.

"Ahhh so you remember. We were talking about the case since I came to you frustrated. In trying to console me you made a slip and referred to Hino as Setsuna. I looked at you strange but you said it was because you were working on a case for someone named Meioh Setsuna and had gotten the names crossed since you had been working fervently on her case. Believing you since I knew what it was like, I ignored and forgot about it. That was until Usa told me the name of the woman you were seen with. It tugged at my memory but I couldn't place it until Motoki and Usa told me what they saw on the news. Mamoru took a picture of you while you were staying over one night and showed it to me. That's when I knew, but as Usa said we still worked to be 100% sure. You had never liked to watch the news unless it was about you Seiya. I always told you it'd bite you in the ass." Saphir said with a laugh. But his comment drove an already seething Seiya over the edge, as everyone looked on with shock and horror as he did the unimaginable.

Taking a scissors and lunged at Usagi. If he couldn't have her then no one could; especially Mamoru. Before he could get to her fully Mamoru had come out of his stupor and attacked Seiya. As he tackled him to the floor he knocked the scissors out of his hand and punched him for good measure. His brothers who had been quiet all along rushed over to help restrain Seiya until help arrived.

As they were being carried off by the police, a throng of media had assembled as flashing bulbs went off with journalists trying to get the best picture of the elusive black widow and her partner Kou Seiya. She turned around and looked Saphir straight in the eyes with renewed confidence. "You'll never be rid of me. I always get what I want." Looking over at Mamoru as a hint, she finally turned with a smirk and allowed herself to be pushed into the police car.

"Usako! Usako!" Upon hearing Mamoru shouting for his sister, Saphir turned to see that she was unconscious.

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**ahhhh now we finally know who Setsuna...sorry Rei...is :) do you like?? was my surprise good or was it anti-climatic???? R&R thanks....hope you enjoyed! oh and there's still a bit more explanation to be done in the next chapter, as this one focused mainly on exposing Rei and Seiya**


	18. Not quite a broken promise

**o0o0o0o here it is! the final chapter!! sorry I took a few days....I wanted it to be right (plus my internet was STRUGGLING!!) lol! so I hope you enjoy it!! **

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It had been four days since everything went down. He had ignored work to be here by her side every day. Doctors had said there was nothing physically wrong with her that they could find, and her body probably was stressed so it was doing the natural thing which was shutting down so that it could rest. It had eased his worries a bit but now as day four was drawing to an end he became worried again.

He had told Motoki to keep on working, and he'd call him the minute she awoke. Mamoru worked in the hospital so he came and sat with her at times. He left him alone with her on those occasions as he knew there were things he wanted to say in private even though she probably couldn't hear. "My version of Dutch courage." Mamoru had said.

Now as he sat by her side holding her hand he silently prayed that she would soon wake up. As she began to groan he mouthed a small thank you to the sky and watched with nervous excitement as she seemed to be waking up. Her eyes fluttered open as she turned on her side. Eyes fully open she looked into the face of her brother and smiled.

"Hey." That was all she got out before he crushed her with a hug. Now it was his turn to cry. No matter what the doctors said he wouldn't have been happy until she was awake and talking to him. Explaining to her where he was going, he made a quick exit to call Mamoru and Motoki. Lying back on the bed she stared at the ceiling. It was all finally over and she let all the unshed tears fall, this time the sobs shook her as she covered her face with her palms.

Upon entering the room Saphir quickly went to her side, and held her as she cried into his shirt. "Usa what's wrong? Come on baby girl tell me what's wrong?" No matter what he said or did, she continued to cry so he just held her. After a bit he let her go and signalled to Mamoru to take his place as he exited to take a stroll around the hospital. Figuring he'd leave her until she was ready to talk, he let her be. She had moved over a bit in the bed so he could sit comfortably. Realising her sobbing had subsided he decided to ask her why she was crying, but was surprised when she started talking.

"I thought he was going to kill me. I saw the scissors and froze. What if....what if you hadn't gotten to him in time? I knew he liked me but I didn't know he was a lunatic! This whole thing was all my fault; I should have just ended the relationship with him when I knew I didn't, couldn't feel anything for him. I put you all in so much danger without realising it."

Allowing her to continue the rant, he kept holding her. There wasn't a word of what she said that was true, but for her sanity and peace of mind he had to let her get it out of her system before reassuring her. As if to confirm what he thought, her breathing calmed drastically once she was finished. Moving from her side to sit in front of her on the bed, he held up her chin with his index finger so she would look him in the eye.

"Usako, he wasn't going to get to you; even if I didn't stop him Saphir was there and so were Motoki and my brothers. Don't blame yourself for what you had no control over. In fact I'll go as far as saying it was our fault; we didn't trust Seiya and either Saphir, Motoki or I should have stepped in and stopped the facade to get you out of the situation, especially when we figured out that Setsuna was actually Hino Rei. It would have been better for me to keep pretending with her until we had everything we wanted instead of keeping you with Seiya. We put you in danger so we should be asking your forgiveness Usako. I'll ask first: do you forgive me for putting you in harm's way?"

Giving a slight smile she nodded her acceptance of his apology and forgiveness for what he deemed to be their mistake. Hugging her as closely as possible, he buried his face in her hair hoping for a bit of relief from the emotions trying to take control. Not wanting to pull away, he rested his chin on her head and asked her: "Is that why you haven't been sleeping? This was eating at you the whole time?"

Her simple exhale and slight drooping of the shoulders told him what he needed to know; and it didn't make him feel any better. He should have recognised that she was uncomfortable despite continuing to go through with the plan. Taking a deep breath he apologised to her. "I'm sorry Usako." He was sorry for everything, right back to the beginning when he treated her like crap. She had apologised profusely for spilling her drink on his pants but after not having a good day he insulted her. Not backing down she insulted him back, and so began their tryst of sorts. 'Maybe, just maybe if I had been nice to her we would have been together and this whole thing would have been avoided.' Of all the emotions flying through his system, the strongest he felt was regret. He regretted treating her badly, he regretted meeting Rei, and he regretted letting this entire mess to escalate to a point where her life had been put in physical danger. For the first time in his life he felt unsure of what to do, so he went along with the dictates of his body and simply cried.

******

The place was dark and both persons seemed genuinely confused as to why.

"Oh come on Motoki, we have some place to be!" cried Mamoru. "He said he had your gift for you and he'd wait on us to get here."

"Don't worry Mamo – chan. I'm sure he forgot and headed home. We could pass by him on our way and still be on time."

Leaning against the door to think, Mamoru gave a slight yelp of surprise as the door budged under his weight, signalling that it wasn't locked. Both got a feeling in the pit of their stomachs that something wasn't right. Leaving Usagi outside alone with a possible threat afoot would have been foolish, so he held her hand as she walked in behind him, trying to keep as quiet as they could. Standing in one position so that their eyes could adjust to the darkness, the uneasiness increased when they heard something moving near the back of the room.

Fearing the worst, Usagi grabbed onto Mamoru's arm as he pulled her closer. 'Maybe Rei followed through on her threat. Maybe she is back.' Her thoughts were scaring her and she was thankful for Mamoru's calm demeanour which didn't allow her to freak out. The lights were flicked on and she screamed.

"Happy Birthday Usa!" the chorus went up. Scanning the room she saw her friends and family all smiling at her. Her eyes fell on Motoki and knew he had to be the one that planned it all; the grin on his face told her as much. Releasing Mamoru's arm she went over to him and started hitting his chest. "You nearly gave us a blasted heart attack you freak!"

Shielding himself from his attacker, he put up his hands in mock surrender. "Us? What do you mean scared us? This was Mamoru's idea! Attack him!"

Turning around she saw Mamoru with his lips pursed together in the attempts of stifling a laugh. "You did all this? Why didn't you tell me?" she asked as she started her attack on a new victim. During her attack he had started laughing while defending himself. Upon the end of her attack she launched herself into his arms. "Thank you Mamo – chan, it means a lot to me."

The others had watched the display with amusement, until Saphir started. "Ok come on you can do that later. It's our turn to have her Chiba. You're so selfish." At the comment the whole room laughed.

"Thank you guys. But please don't do it again! You know my heart can't take these things!" she said with mirth in her eyes. "Now come on let's enjoy ourselves."

******

"Thank you again Mamo – chan." She was snuggling more into his side as they got comfortable. They had come home spent the remainder of the night in bliss and were now settling to go to sleep. As she drifted off to sleep, Mamoru stayed awake and let his thoughts wander.

Wherever the mental wind took his mind he allowed it to go, until it ended up on his new found family. Weeks after Usagi had been released from the hospital they both had gone to Saphir's office. He had called them there, alerting them to the fact that he had sorted out all the legal hoopla surrounding his trust fund and newly found wealth. When they had entered the office the same men who he now knew were his brothers smiled at him and Usagi as they sat. Introducing themselves, they got to know each other before Saphir went through everything.

Saphir had gone over what he had explained already in exposing Rei and Seiya but in finer detail. His brothers, Kunzite and Nephrite, had been named executors of their mother's separate estate that she had set up for Mamoru, but his signature had to be on any documents which requested any funds to be released. It explained why Rei knew she had to keep with Mamoru even though she had found his brothers, since their signatures alone would have done nothing.

His father had passed away some time ago leaving his brothers in charge of the entire estate; they therefore intended to have Mamoru back as part of the family. Again he found himself unsure of what to do so he looked to Usagi who gave him a comforting smile. If he accepted it would he have to leave with them? That would mean he had to leave Usagi and they had definitely come too far for him to just leave her for wealth now.

Reading his thoughts from his face, his brother Kunzite explained that both he and Nephrite would take care of the family business and it wasn't necessary for him to leave whatever he was doing. Being a part of the family meant they would grant him access to the entire family funds, whereby he would need his and either of their signatures; merely for security purposes he had added, in case another Rei comes along.

"Go ahead Mamo – chan. It'll be good for you to be involved with your family." She had said; and not thinking twice he agreed.

The reunited family spent all the time afterwards getting to know each other and found that they had a lot of things in common. A trip had been arranged for both he and Usagi to come and see the family estate, with his brothers telling him, "This will be yours one day so come and get used to it." It was a bittersweet feeling as he finally saw and knew where his navel string was buried, but understood that it wasn't in a place it was wanted. Usagi's presence at his side had made the trip even more enjoyable. He had voiced his fears over having to deal with being a person of wealth and the responsibilities it brought. Much like he had done for her when she was uncertain about a career path, she now stood behind him as he accepted his past and future.

When they left they all promised to visit each other, making sure that no more than 2 months had passed between seeing each other. His brothers had come back for Usagi's birthday so they'd have to prepare for a trip in a few weeks time, smiling at the thought that for the first time he'd have to travel to meet family. It gave him a sense of peace and satisfaction.

A leg being draped over his own brought him out of his trance. Allowing his eyes to trace her entire body he sighed in contentment, returned his head to the pillow and closed his eyes. A part of him had been rattled by the situation with Rei using him only for his money that even he didn't know about; but Usagi had known him without knowing of his wealth and he could therefore believe that she loved him and not his money.

A scene played in his mind of his future with her. They were still living in the apartment, married now, and with children. More and more the scenes of a happy family played as he saw them visiting his family for birthdays and holidays. His heart swelled with pride and a tear slid from his closed eyes.

Lips kissed away the lone, stray tear which made him open his eyes. "Why are you crying Mamo – chan? Is everything ok?"

Her gentle voice made him aware of how early in the morning it now was. Granted they had gone to bed around midnight, he didn't realise he had spent so much time deep in thought. "Nothing's wrong Usako; don't worry."

Rolling over on his side, he scooted down so they could be face to face. "You know, I made you a promise way back when we were in Greece; and I don't think I've ever followed it through." Brushing a few stray strands of hair out of her face, he ran a finger along the side of her face. "I love you Usako. I can't remember the day I fell in love with you and I don't think I need to remember. What's important is that I love you now and I plan on loving you forever." Her finger on his lips stopped him from saying anything further and he couldn't fathom why she would do it.

"You've already carried out your promise Mamo – chan. You've shown me you love me more than you can know, and your words won't begin to do your actions any justice. When I figured out that I loved you I promised myself I'd be happy for you and try to quell the love I have for you. The more I tried to do that, the more I loved you. But I'm grateful it's worked out this way. So I'll echo your words: what's important now is that I love you now and I plan on loving you forever."

Sealing their vow with a kiss, the couple snuggled together before they let sleep claim them. It was a time in their relationship they would never forget, and they planned to use it to make them stronger. As they lay in each other's arms the sun bathed the lovers with its rays, signifying a new dawn had come for them.

* * *

**there you have it! my first story completed!! Thank you ALLLL for staying along for the ride and I hope you enjoyed it all....thank you for all the comments and feel free to drop any comments about where I can improve...**

**quick note: Coming from a legal background let me just say two things:**

**1. I am NOT affiliated with Sailor Moon in ANY WAY possible...this is my disclaimer and it doesn't matter where I put it, once it's there! **

**2. Some of the legal hoopla in this story isn't quite accurate since it is just for a story (much like how medical shows like House etc aren't medically correct on everything)...please, therefore, DO NOT use anything said in here as any sort of legal advice etc**

**just my 2 cents! lol you can always review this chapter and let me know if you like it....everyone, or least the majority of you need to like the ending! I love you all and God bless!! :)**


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